The Skywalker Legacy
by Girlbender875
Summary: Luke, Leia, Han, Chewbacca, and Mon Mothma all travel back in time by an unknown source to when Anakin Skywalker was nine years old, and find out how Darth Vader came into being by living it.
1. The Trip Begins

**Okay, for those of you who have been reading this story, I totally revamped the chapters; I haven't changed a bit of information (except one paragraph where I had my info wrong on the Jedi), I've just made the chapters longer by meshing multiple chapters all in one. This may sound confusing, but you'll understand once you start reading again, so I hope you all enjoy the now LONG chapters!**

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"Luke,"

Luke turned around from his stance on the balcony and faced his sister, Leia.

"Leia,"

"We have a problem,"

"A problem?"

Leia's face showed no emotion, her political face plastered to her skin, as if any air holes between the mask and her actual face would cause catastrophes beyond imagining. She merely looked back at Luke after he asked his question, and motioned for him to follow. Of course, Luke had gotten used to her political face, and knew how to read through it, even when she didn't want him to.

Luke followed Leia off of the balcony showing the busy lanes of morning Coruscant traffic. A morning mist hung in the air as Luke followed Leia out of his quarters and down the stairs, outside of the apartment. Crowds bustled about, but Leia marched on, filling the air with her presence of command. Luke merely followed behind her before he lost her in the crowd due to her quick stride.

The Senate building loomed into view as Luke practically tripped over himself to keep up with Leia. On most occasions, Leia would only use this walk if there was an emergency, or if she was furious over a matter that had to be attended to immediately.

"Leia, what _is_ going on?"

"I'll tell you once we get inside,"

Luke sighed and jogged behind his sister. The doors to the Senate building opened up to welcome them in. Inside, Mon Mothma waited for them with a few other Rebels, including Han Solo with Chewbacca, and Wedge Antilles. Luke stared at them at first, and then looked over at Leia once more.

"Leia-"

"Luke, there's a problem," Leia looked over at Luke, and finally showed her emotions on her face; Luke saw an apprehensive look on her face, and on everyone else's as well.

"What's the problem?" Luke asked her.

"The Imperials are closing in on the Aquaris system, as well as the Myrka system. They're getting closer to Coruscant, and we have soldiers spread all across the galaxy in thin layers, so if the Imperials do manage to get here, we might not be able to hold them back."

"They're closing in? Where are the troops that were on those planets?" Luke questioned. "What about the locals?"

"The locals are trying to make an army of their own with the little amount of troops we have there, but it's not enough; the Imperials have enough men to invade a planet three times their size."

"Ha! Didn't I tell you the New Republic wouldn't last? Come on, I told you they wouldn't!"

Luke and the others looked around in shock as they tried to identify the anonymous voice, but before they got a lock on who said it, another body less voice, a more mature and deeper voice spoke in reply.

"Oh, for goodness sake, they're not going to come crashing down."

The first voice made a snort. "Sure, as if the first Republic did wonderful when Palpatine became Supreme Chancellor."

"That was _different_,"

The younger voice made a disgusted noise. "Where have I heard that line before?"

Leia ran off down the hallway to see if the people were there, and then came running back with a shake of her head saying they weren't there after all. Han started to run in the other direction, but Mon Mothma grabbed his arm silently and put a finger to her mouth. She then split them in two groups; Han, Chewbacca, Luke, Leia, and she would go down one area and the rest of the group would go down the other. They silently split and ran down the hallway, checking every single room along the way to see if the eavesdroppers were in there.

After a while, they decided to go up one level to see if they were on the next floor somehow, or perhaps even in the Senate room, where the Senate of the Empire and Old Republic and now New Republic would go and discuss matters.

The group searched on and on, but the voices were gone without a trace, so they decided to head back to the room at the entrance hoping that the other group found the two men, since the voices sounded like masculine voices.

Mon Mothma was the first to notice the new problem that aroused from the first problem. Once they reached the entrance room where they were, there was a familiar tint to the area. The carpet for one thing, was a blood red color. Then, there was the talking off in the distance in the Senate room. The last time Mon Mothma checked, the Senate wasn't in session; she would have been notified. Luke and the others noticed as well, except Leia noticed one little detail that they all missed.

Well, not little.

"Why is everything so big?"

Han looked over at Leia. "Leia, what's wrong with your voice?"

"What do you mean? What's wrong with yours?"

"_My _voice?"

Mon Mothma looked over to where they should have been, but didn't see them. She gasped and took a step back, frantically looking around for where they could have disappeared.

"Mon Mothma, what is it?" she heard Leia ask her.

"Where are you? What happened? I can hear you but I can't see you," she replied.

"Whoa, I have to look up to see you! What's going on here?" Han exclaimed.

Mon Mothma took a sharp breath inward when she looked down to see Han, Chewie, Luke, and Leia standing looking up at her. They were _midgets_, really; they were about up to her waist in height, except for Chewbacca who was about to her chest. They all had younger characteristics to them. Leia's face seemed a little pudgy from being a young child, her once long and elegant hair now only halfway down her back. Luke, on the other hand, had a short haircut that tightly hugged his head, his blue eyes looking as if they were bulging out of his face. Han had his hair looser; it looked as if he were a Wookiee with his hair grown halfway down his neck in a loose and carefree fashion. Chewbacca even looked younger somehow; his once rough features seemed to soften, as it did for all of them. They all had little round faces, and were dressed in tunics which Mon Mothma recognized immediately.

"What happened to you all?" she breathed. "Look at your reflections!"

They all went over to a window casually, which in their opinion grew about ten times in size, and then they all realized why. Their mouths dropped open, and they stared for the longest time at their reflections, and Chewbacca made a worried grunt.

"Yeah, Chewie, what _did_ happen?" Han agreed. Luke stopped looking at his reflection and started to look at his hands and poked himself as if he thought he was dreaming. Leia went to looking around the room.

"I have no recollection of this room ever looking like this," she mumbled in her shock.

Mon Mothma did not look happy; not happy at all. "I do," was all she said through an unbelieving tone.

Luke looked over- no, _up_ at her. "What is it?"

"This is exactly how the entrance to the Senate building looked like twenty- no, _thirty_-six years ago."

This time, Luke wasn't the only one who replied. _"What?"_

"I know, this is ridiculous, impossible…I can't even begin to say how many words that could be used for this situation, but…this looks _exactly the way it did!_" Mon Mothma didn't seem to believe what she herself was saying.

Suddenly, there was a noise of a door opening and then a lot of footsteps heading their way and they heard people talking.

Mon Mothma was about to motion for them to hide until she realized that there was nothing to worry about. _After all, they're dressed like Jedi, and if this really isn't a dream, no one will think anything about it,_ she thought. _I'm the one that has to hide. _Mon Mothma turned to go hide when she saw her own reflection, showing a younger woman, one without half as many worry lines and stress lines. Young, mature, and beautiful, Mon Mothma stood elegantly dressed in her Senatorial clothing, her young face in a look of sheer horror as she realized that she really _wasn't_ dreaming; she was the same age that she was when the Trade Federation was creating a crisis with Naboo by blockading it. Mon Mothma's thoughts went to the once queen and senator of that system, Padmé Amidala.

"Shouldn't we hide, or something?" Han asked her, expecting her to know since she lived during this time.

"No," Mon Mothma answered confidently. "You're all dressed in Jedi clothing-"

The realization of the Jedi stung her like a bug's sting or bite in a swampy area. The Jedi were _alive_, they weren't _dead_. She had to do something; she couldn't just stand there and do nothing. Not this time. Alderaan would not be destroyed, the Jedi would not be massacred unjustly, and Palpatine would not call the Old Republic the Empire. No, it wasn't the _Old_ Republic anymore; this was _the _Republic.

"This is _Jedi_ clothing?" Luke looked appalled. "Are you saying we really are thirty-six years in the past? That can't possibly be true. It just can't!"

"It _is_," Mon Mothma replied. "This is the Old Republic. Just make sure you don't call it the Old Republic. If we really are in the past, people are going to call it the Republic. I have to be sure, though."

"How are you going to do that?" Leia asked with a suspicious look on her face. "Surely you're not suggesting-"

"I have to be sure," Mon Mothma interrupted. "Anyway, Princess Leia, I don't believe you have any power in that decision here. You don't even exist yet. Nor do you, Luke, or even you, Han. It's just Chewbacca and me. So, I'd keep my head down if I were you."

"Where are we going?" Han asked as Mon Mothma started to walk off in a swift stride with Leia running behind since her short legs wouldn't allow her to walk that fast.

"To the Jedi Temple," Mon Mothma answered.

Luke's eyes widened, but he didn't argue. His face showed the emotion of shock, disbelief, and excitement. Han simply shrugged his shock off, and let his excitement take over. _This should be interesting,_ he thought.

As the Senators came out into the crowd, a few gave appreciative nods to Senator Mon Mothma as she confidently walked ahead with the rest of the crew running their short legs off behind her. One of the Senators was Bail Organa. Leia froze all of a sudden, but thankfully, Han knew she would when she saw him, so he grabbed her arm and forced her to resume her pace.

"I know, Leia, that caught me off guard, too," he whispered in her ear while he tried to maintain a normal control of his breath. "But staring at him is not very tactful. He's not even thinking about having an adopted baby girl and naming her Leia. If this really is thirty-six years before where we were just discussing Imperials invading systems, you're not even being conceived yet."

The crowd eventually dissipated, and only a few Senators were still in the same area as they were. One of them looked like an elder human male, dressed in senatorial clothing with his white hair brushed back. He was discussing things with his associates, and Leia caught the words 'Naboo' and 'blockade'. The two words swirled around in her head as she tried to remember any history over that, but failed to find anything. Her knowledge of the Old Republic was very slim since most of the records were destroyed. The Empire only taught Imperial history, not Republic. Mon Mothma had a disgusted look on her face.

"What is it, um, Senator Mon Mothma?" Luke asked out loud, and then whispered to Mon Mothma. "It _is_ senator, right?"

Mon Mothma giggled and then nodded. "Nothing is wrong, just a scumbag talking to his aides."

Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca looked back at the male senator talking seriously to the other group of men. He then nodded and walked off into the crowds of Coruscant.

Luke looked back up at her. "Who is he?"

"Senator Palpatine,"

_"Senator Palpatine?"_

Han made a disgusted noise. "You weren't kidding about scumbag. How in the name of-"

The rest of Han's statement trailed off as a person walked by, guarded by red guards. Luke gaped at them until Leia nudged him to close his mouth and stop staring. The man noticed, however, and looked straight at Luke. Instead of frowning, though, he smiled gently at him and walked up to them, turning to Mon Mothma.

"Senator Mon Mothma," he acknowledged.

Mon Mothma replied with a nod. "Chancellor Valorum."

"I see you are escorting some lost younglings?" the Chancellor asked with a chuckle.

"Indeed," Mon Mothma answered. "They do seem to show up everywhere."

"Yes, it is good to see such innocence in these dark times," Valorum said. "I did not think that the Trade Federation would get to the point of blockade. This is getting bad. I am going to have to go to the Jedi Council for this matter."

"I do not doubt your judgment, Chancellor," Mon Mothma replied. "We probably will need some Jedi help. I'm sure Senator Palpatine is going to keep in touch with Queen Amidala?"

"Yes, he announced that in the Senate. If you will excuse me, Senator,"

Chancellor Valorum gave a little nod of his head and headed back over to the red guards and walked on. Mon Mothma watched him walk for a little while, and then started off again. This time, her pace was slower, but tighter. Chewbacca made a grunt.

"Exactly what I was about to say, Chewie," Han replied to his comrade. "What was that all about?"

"The Trade Federation has created a blockade around the system of Naboo," Mon Mothma explained. "That session must have been right after the blockade was made. Eventually, after two Jedi are sent, the Trade Federation will cut off their communications and invade the main city of Theed, capture the queen, lose the queen to the Jedi, and then get defeated."

"That sounds like fun," Leia muttered sarcastically. "Why are we younger, though? Senator Mon Mothma, you look far younger, and I'm nine-years-old! If I'm nine, that probably makes Luke nine as well. What about you, Han?"

"Yeah, I'm probably about nine, as well." Han answered. Chewbacca made a grunt. "We all know you're not nine, Chewie,"

They walked a little bit longer, and then Mon Mothma stopped. They all stopped, out of breath, behind her. Then they looked up and saw a giant building going on and on through the clouds. People in tunics and robes walked back and forth through the main entrance, up and down the stairs. Other people dressed in casual clothing stood in awe behind a certain point, children gasping and pointing, and adults merely standing in amazement.

"Is this the Jedi Temple?" Luke asked. Mon Mothma simply stared, now absolutely positive that this was all really happening.

"Yes," she finally managed to say. "Let's go. You look like younglings to everyone. I need to escort you inside. Try to be careful; I can't stay in there. I'll see if I can remember where my apartment is, and I'll wait for you here in three standard hours."

Mon Mothma led the way up the majestic stairs, into a giant room. Jedi walked throughout the whole area. A handful of Jedi children were running around, laughing the whole way, an older Jedi smiling as he slowly followed to keep an eye on them. Teenage Jedi walked around talking to each other and laughing at jokes, and adult Jedi wandered about heading to a destination or talking to each other in casual tones. Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca couldn't help to stop and stare, but Mon Mothma walked on, forcing them to resume walking behind her. She stopped in front of the adult Jedi who was watching the Jedi children playing around. The Jedi faced her and gave her a bow of respect, and then straightened up and looked her in the eye.

"Senator Mon Mothma," he started off with a warm smile. "It is a great pleasure to see you. I see that you have brought some stowaways."

"Yes, Jedi Master Cin Drallig," she replied. "They do seem to appear everywhere at once."

"Indeed they do. I thank you for escorting them back, Senator."

"Of course,"

"It has been a pleasure. May the Force be with you."

Mon Mothma nodded her head in acknowledgment, turned around, and walked down the stairs. Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca exchanged nervous glances. Jedi Master Cin Drallig simply smiled warmly at them.

"Well, now, I'm sure you had some fun wandering outside of the Temple," he said to them. "Go on to the garden. Most of the younglings are there, so you'll probably find your clan."

"Yes, Jedi Master Cin Drallig," Han replied, knowing no other respectful way to speak to a Jedi.

They hurried out of his sight and turned down a hallway, crashing right into a young adult. The young man chuckled, and helped them all up.

"You all try to be more careful, all right?" the man said in an educated Coruscanti accent. Luke's eyes widened without the man's noticing.

Leia quickly stepped in Luke's way before the man noticed his expression. "We're terribly sorry, sir. We'll be going now." She grabbed Luke's and Han's arms and dragged them out of the man's way as Chewbacca came scurrying out of the way as well. The man walked by, and went into the main room. They saw him go up the large stairs that led up to the next level and disappear. Leia turned to face Luke.

"What was that all about?" she asked him.

"That…that was…_that was Obi-Wan Kenobi!_" he managed to get out.

"That was the old fossil?" Han repeated in doubt. "It couldn't be him, Luke; he-"

"Is thirty-six, no, thirty-three years younger than when we last saw him, Han," Leia finished. "That could have been him."

"I can't believe we just bumped into Obi-Wan Kenobi," Luke muttered.

"Forget bumping into him, I can't believe he looked like that and didn't go for a girl," Han corrected. Leia rolled her eyes.

"Let's just see if we can find our way around here," she stated. "We have to meet Mon Mothma in three standard hours."

"Be careful how you call her, Leia," Luke warned. "We don't have the same status here as we do back in…well, um…_our_ time."

"What, so we all call her Senator Mon Mothma no matter what?" Han asked.

"Yes, we're going to have to," Luke replied.

"What did that Jedi mean about 'clans', though?" Leia thought out loud. "I don't know anything about that. Do you, Luke?"

"No, I have no idea what he was talking about," Luke answered seriously. "I don't even know where their garden is. I didn't even know they _had_ a garden!"

A handful of Jedi about their age went running by, and Luke barely had a chance to call out to them. "Hey! Do you guys want to…um…go out to the garden and play a game?"

Leia, Han, and Chewbacca eyed him in an irritated fashion, Leia's facial expression saying what her silent mouth would not say. _What in the name of Alderaan are you doing? Why are you talking to them about something we don't even know about?_

"Sure!" a young Jedi exclaimed happily.

The other younger Jedi broke into excited giggles. A female Twi'lek Jedi youngling smiled. "Let's go to the garden, then!"

"All right," Luke replied. "Lead the way!"

The other younglings ran ahead, their excitement getting the best of them. Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca ran after them. They followed the younglings for a while, up the main stairs they saw Obi-Wan go up, and then after going down some windy passages, came upon a doorway. The Twi'lek ran up to it, pushed a button, and the door opened, bright sunlight spilling into the hallway. The younglings ran outside, and Luke and the others followed.

The garden was huge, plants everywhere as well as fountains. There was a river coming from a waterfall, and Jedi were relaxing or playing all over the place. The younglings they arrived with were waiting for them in a clear area by the river. Luke noticed Obi-Wan Kenobi lying down, looking up at the sky with a thoughtful look on his face.

A girl from the group of younglings waved them over. "Come on! We don't have all day!"

"We're coming!" Han answered. He then turned to the others. "What are we going to do? We can't play stuff that they play. What if it has to do with being…you know…Force sensitive?"

"Han, you're being paranoid," Leia remarked. "Look at them, for goodness sakes. They're only playing tag-"

Except once they looked over to see what Leia was seeing, Leia wished she hadn't said 'only'. They were running around playing tag, but with a different element in it. The person who was 'it', who was currently a Mon Calamarian girl, was gently nudging people through the Force instead of tagging them.

"All right, I take that back," Leia corrected. "They're playing tag with the Force."

Han looked a little unnerved at the youngling's game. "If they're simply _playing_ using the Force, can you imagine if they got into a fight?"

"It wouldn't be pretty," Luke agreed. "But Jedi don't get into fights unless they have to."

Luke's eyes wandered over to Obi-Wan once more. He remembered when Obi-Wan called himself Ben Kenobi, the old hermit who lived on Tatooine. Now, Luke could see how he looked and how he acted in his own home. Now that Luke actually thought about it, there was always a very small tint of loneliness or discomfort in his eyes. No matter how small it was, it was still there, but Luke had never noticed it previously until he now thought of it.

Obi-Wan shifted from lying on his back to lying on his side, so he could watch the younglings at play. He smiled as he watched them, but there was restlessness in his eyes. Luke pondered on what Obi-Wan's look could be about, so he went into the Force to sense any emotions Obi-Wan might be letting out.

Until now, Luke had never noticed that little sensation in his head, as if something was empty and it is now full. When Luke went into the Force, then, he almost collapsed at the magnitude of the Force. He could hear people's thoughts, see other Jedi, _feel_ other Jedi, and know what they're doing, where they are, _everything_. Luke's knees buckled, and he felt himself falling to the ground. He felt Leia through the Force. He felt her jump in surprise, and run over to catch him. He felt Han and Chewbacca run over to aid her.

Everything around Luke was blurry or black. His vision was swimming, but he could sense everything acutely. Off in the distance, he heard Leia's voice.

"Luke! Luke, are you all right? Luke! Can you hear me?"

Luke tried to answer, tried to open his mouth and say "I'm all right", but he couldn't. The overwhelming power of the other Jedi was so calming and surprisingly strong, that Luke felt himself just drifting away…

"What's the matter with him?" Han asked Leia with concern thick in his voice.

Leia looked as worried as he sounded. "I don't know,"

Chewbacca made a loud grunt to wake him up. Han noticed Obi-Wan Kenobi, if that really _was_ Obi-Wan Kenobi, looking over at them from his spot on a little hill overlooking the younglings they followed into the garden. Obi-Wan got up and walked over to them. Leia's eyes widened and she looked over at Han and Chewbacca. They both nodded and kept quiet. When Obi-Wan reached them, his eyes automatically went over to Luke.

"What happened here?" he asked them.

"We're not sure, um…sir," Leia answered.

"Let me see," Obi-Wan said as he gently took the unconscious Luke from their arms. Obi-Wan put his hand on Luke's forehead, closing his eyes. After a little while, he opened them up again and smiled at them.

"Don't worry about your friend, young ones," he told them. "Your friend is all right. Just take him to his room and he'll wake up after a while."

"Thank you, sir," Han thanked him gratefully. Obi-Wan smiled, and was about to reply when another voice called out.

"Padawan, come here,"

Obi-Wan stood up immediately. "Yes, Master."

He left them to go up to an older Jedi with a rather large nose, long brown hair that had streaks of grey, a mustache and beard, and had a tall sturdy frame. His powerful body stood erect, waiting for Obi-Wan to get to him.

Han looked over at Leia. "Do you want to see what's going on?"

"We can see everything right here, Han," Leia replied. Han looked annoyed until he heard what she said next. "I want to _hear_ what's going on."

Han smiled, and they looked over at Chewbacca. Chewie picked up Luke, and the threesome snuck over to where the man was waiting for Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan arrived, and bowed respectfully.

"You called, Master?"

The man looked at him seriously. "We have been called to do an assignment for the Chancellor. We are to go and negotiate with the Trade Federation to stop the blockade on Naboo."

"The Chancellor personally spoke of this?"

"Yes. We must get ready immediately. We are leaving tomorrow morning."

"Yes, Master."

The two of them walked off to head inside the Temple once more. Leia turned to face the other two.

"We know who the two Jedi Senator Mon Mothma spoke of are now," she said.

"So Obi-Wan and that guy he calls 'Master' are the two Jedi?" Han looked confused. "Why does he call him 'Master'?"

"Apparently it's a respectful term. I'm just afraid we might abuse it if we use it."

Chewbacca made a suggestion.

"All right, Chewie, let's ask one of those younglings."

Chewbacca waited in the bushes with Luke, and Leia and Han walked over to a group of younglings talking to each other. They all looked over at them with smiles as they walked over. Leia smiled back.

"Hello," she acknowledged. "Do you know who those two Jedi that were talking over there were?"

"Oh, yes," a human boy replied. "That was Master Kenobi and Master Jinn. Master Kenobi is Master Jinn's Padawan."

"Do you know their full names?" Han prodded.

"Jedi Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi and Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn,"

"Thank you," Leia said to them, motioning for Han to follow her.

They walked back to Chewbacca and relayed the news to him. The Wookiee grunted and shrugged at the word Padawan and what it meant. Luke made a small moan and the three of them immediately turned their attention to him.


	2. Dinners and Getting Lost

**See how much longer this chapter is?! It's AMAZING!!**

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Mon Mothma sighed as she walked through the busy streets of Coruscant. She was tempted to call for an air taxi, but decided against it. She wanted to look at the Republic while it was still in its full beauty. While Chancellor Valorum was still in power, the Republic was still its true self. When Palpatine came to being Chancellor, however, was when the Republic started to deteriorate from the inside out.

Mon Mothma pushed her way through a crowd near the mall, finally reaching an area that wasn't as crowded with junkies and other ruffians of the sort. She was heading to the upper section of Coruscant, and leaving the lower and middle section. Mon Mothma saw Senator Bail Organa and couldn't help getting choked up. The sight of Bail Organa was too much for her. She thought of when Alderaan was blown up. She thought of what the look on Bail's face was when he saw his end come in a split second. Mon Mothma blotted her teary eyes on her sleeve to prevent herself from crying.

She started to walk faster to avoid further time to think about Senator Organa. Mon Mothma walked a little longer and finally reached 500 Republica. She walked inside and got to her apartment. When she looked at her chronometer it was 1700 hours, an hour after she left them. A maid walked up to Mon Mothma.

"Welcome back, my lady," she said. "Would you like any refreshments?"

"A glass of water will do," Mon Mothma replied.

The maid gave a bow of her head and walked off to get her water. Mon Mothma sighed and looked at the chronometer once more. She only had an hour to relax and explore if it took an hour to walk between the Temple and her apartment. Mon Mothma sat on her couch and leaned her head back; trying to remember what she did when it was 1700 hours when the Trade Federation blockaded Naboo. _It's a good thing I have a good memory_, she thought. _I think I remember what I was doing at this time. I was…oh, dear. I was heading off to a dinner with Senator Bail Organa. If my memory's serving me well, I was there for three hours talking to him. How am I going to tell Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca that? I'll have to take an air taxi. I've only got thirty minutes before I'm expected at dinner._ Mon Mothma got up from the couch. She started to head out the door when she heard her maid arrive with a glass of water.

"My lady?" she called out. Mon Mothma turned and walked up to the maid, receiving the glass of water from her.

"Thank you, Treesha," she thanked.

"Are you going somewhere, my lady?" Treesha asked.

"Yes, I am leaving early for the dinner at Senator Organa's apartment. Inform anyone who calls that I am out." Mon Mothma replied.

"Of course, my lady," Treesha walked off to the kitchen to clean up. Mon Mothma headed to the door, and went outside. She called for an air taxi, and headed off to the Jedi Temple.

………

"What happened?"

Luke's eyes fluttered open, to reveal three worried-looking faces. Leia sighed in relief. Luke sat up from the grass.

"Are we still in the garden?" he asked them.

"Yes," Han answered. "What happened, Luke?"

"I saw Obi-Wan again, and he looked restless over something, and I wanted to find out, so I went into the Force to sense it. I went into the Force, and instead of just feeling the usual emptiness and being able to focus in on one or two people, I felt a rush of thousands of people; all this energy, calming and powerful, I guess it was overwhelming." Luke explained. "What happened while I was out?"

"Obi-Wan walked up to us to see what happened to you, and then another Jedi named Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn called him," Leia started off. "We listened in on their conversation; they're the two Jedi Senator Mon Mothma was talking about with the blockade around Naboo. They're the two Jedi who rescue the queen and defeat the Trade Federation. We heard them talking about it, but Obi-Wan addressed Qui-Gon as 'Master', and Qui-Gon addressed Obi-Wan as 'Padawan'. Do you know those terms?"

"I think 'Master' is a respectful term for someone older," Luke guessed out loud. "We need to find out about this stuff; we don't know anything about it."

"That's the truth," Han admitted bitterly. "And it's only been an hour since we left Senator Mon Mothma, so we've still got two more hours. That means we're probably having dinner with these guys. Where are we going to sleep?"

"I guess we'll have to figure that out when we talk to Senator Mon Mothma," Leia stated. "Let's just find out what we can. I'm sure Mon Mothma doesn't know everything."

They all got up and went inside. The moment they did, they got lost. Wandering up and down stairs, they didn't have the slightest idea of where they could possibly be.

"This is ridiculous!" Han growled. "We're probably on the 100,000,000,000 floor or something!"

"_You're_ the one who's ridiculous," Leia retaliated. "There's no such thing as the 100,000,000,000 floor!"

"Don't you think we should calm down, guys?" Luke asked them. Leia turned to give him a venomous look.

"_Calm down?_ _I'm perfectly calm!_" she shouted.

"I can see that," Luke replied, shifting away from her and Han the whole way. "I'll just leave you two to vent out your frustration."

Chewbacca grunted an approval, and the two of them slowly backed off from the now fuming Leia and Han.

"I think being nine-years-old is getting to them," Luke whispered to Chewie, who agreed full heartedly.

Leia and Han were about to start yelling at each other when a whole stampede of Jedi, teenagers, adults, and children came walking down the hallway, all talking loudly. Leia and Han ran for their lives with their short legs as taller people loomed closer and closer, appearing to not even notice them. Luke and Chewbacca joined the race, and ran as fast as they could down the hallway. Unfortunately, the older Jedi had longer legs, and they reached them. It did appear that they noticed them, though, since they simply walked around them, the adult Jedi giving kind smiles, the teenager Jedi simply continuing to talk, and the children Jedi waving ecstatically. Luke managed to catch a little bit of conversation a group of teenage girls were talking about.

"I can't believe that we had to do that blindfolded with him!" one of the girls said.

"I know!" another girl agreed. "I'm just glad we're going to dinner, I'm starving!"

"You're not the only one," the first one admitted. "That last exercise left me starving!"

Luke turned to face the others as they ran to prevent from getting trampled since they were in the middle of the crowd. "I think this crowd is heading off to eat dinner."

Han rubbed his grumbling stomach. "Dinner sounds good to me."

They ran along with the crowd, going down set over set of stairs. After a while, it seemed it was never going to end, but finally the crowd slowed down in front of a large doorway. Chewbacca, much to Han's embarrassment, had to give Han a boost to see over the crowds. Han saw people standing and slowly walking inside a giant cafeteria full of tables lining across the room, a long table in the front where some elderly Jedi were sitting. The crowds were slowly walking in and finding seats where they wanted to sit beside their friends, sitting and waiting for everyone else to find a seat.

Chewbacca finally lowered Han. "They're taking their time in finding a seat. Not to mention the fact that the place is currently stuffed with them walking everywhere. That cafeteria is huge."

"Wow, we're only having dinner, but I'm excited about it." Luke said. Han and Leia giggled.

"You know, I think I am, too!" Leia agreed with a laugh. Han and Chewbacca nodded.

………

Mon Mothma sat impatiently in the air taxi as they were completely stopped in typical evening traffic for Coruscant. Mon Mothma saw the Jedi Temple off in the distance, looked at her chronometer, realized she only had ten minutes, and told the driver to just pull over there and she would run the rest of the way.

Mon Mothma got out of the air taxi after it pulled over, and ran as fast as she could. About three minutes later, she reached the Temple. She sprinted up the stairs. _What am I thinking? _Mon Mothma thought as she ran around the main room to see if they were there. _I can't possibly search the whole Temple, and get back to make it on time to dinner which starts in seven minutes! Think, Mon Mothma, did I show up early, late, or on time for the dinner? I showed up…late! I was five minutes late! Wait…oh, goodness. Five minutes is really going to make a difference._ Mon Mothma sighed in exasperation, when she suddenly realized the traffic outside was for people heading home from jobs for dinner. _Dinner! They're at dinner! _Mon Mothma heard noise and ran towards it.

When she reached where the noise was coming from, she saw a giant group of Jedi waiting outside of a rather large looking doorway. In the middle of this group, she saw Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca. She tried to be subtle as possible to get their attention without getting anyone else's attention. Thankfully, she succeeded. Leia noticed her, and motioned to the others. They spoke quickly to each other, and Leia ran out of the group swiftly and silently. Nobody seemed to notice over the loud noise that the Jedi were making over their conversations. Leia reached Mon Mothma.

"What are you doing in here?" Leia asked her urgently. "Is there an emergency?"

"No, just I remembered that I was going out to dinner with Senator Organa," Mon Mothma replied quickly. Leia showed a face of shock. "He invited me yesterday in this time, and I accepted. Other Senators were coming as well. I also remember that I spent three hours talking to them, so you're going to have to fair without me."

"Where are we going to sleep?" Leia questioned. "Where are we going to meet you? _When_ are we going to meet you?"

"You're going to have to sleep here," Mon Mothma answered. "I'm sure there are some empty rooms you can sleep in. That's part of the reason why this Temple is so big, Leia. People live here. This place wasn't for worshiping the Force, you know. Where we are going to meet I'll have to think about. Let me see…tomorrow at lunch, meet me at the main entrance behind the no-tourist line. Is that all right?"

"Sounds fine to me," Leia said. "Tell me you'll have more time tomorrow; we really don't know anything about this place, and we need somebody who does."

"I will have more time tomorrow, but I barely know anything about the Jedi that you would probably want to know."

"As long as it's _anything_,"

"All right,"

Mon Mothma saw Leia run back to the others, and then rushed out of the Temple. Looking at her chronometer, she called another air taxi. Cursing herself for taking so long, Mon Mothma literally threw herself into the air taxi.

"500 Republica, please!" she told the driver. "Quickly!"

………

"We're going to have to _sleep_ here?"

Luke looked pleasantly surprised, but Han brought him back to reality.

"Where are we going to sleep? What, we're just going to go barging into somebody's room and say 'this is our room now'?"

"I don't know, Han," Leia replied. "That's all she said."

"We'll just have to find empty rooms," Luke proposed.

Han looked less than amused. "Easier said than done, kid,"

"Han, technically we're all nine-years-old," Leia reminded him. "I wouldn't call him 'kid' if I were you."

"I still haven't figured out _why_, though," Luke stated, now serious. "_Why_ we're nine-years-old, _why_ we really did travel back in time; as well as how, but anyway…"

Leia looked annoyed. "This is ridiculous. I can't understand those questions either, Luke."

About ten minutes later, they made it into the cafeteria. By then, almost half of the seats were taken. All the Jedi in there were either waving over other friends or talking loudly to each other. Han pointed out an area that didn't have that many people nearby it. The foursome headed over there and sat down. Han looked at the table with a disapproving look.

"Where's the food?" he asked. Luke, Leia, and Chewbacca looked at the table as well to see that Han was right; there were plates for them, but no food. The crowd of Jedi kept on coming in, making noise the whole way.

Another ten minutes later, the rest of the crowd finally made it in the cafeteria. All of them found their seats, and just kept on talking. Luke looked over at Chewbacca. Chewbacca replied with a shrug.

Leia looked irritated. "What are they all waiting for? Everyone's in the room and seated now."

"I don't know," Han answered.

Luke looked at his chronometer. "None of this makes sense. It's only 1740 hours, there would be no reason to have dinner this early, yet everyone's sitting here. So everybody's sitting here, and there's no food."

"That makes perfect sense." Han agreed sarcastically.

They sat waiting for thirty minutes longer. Han finally moaned and just put his head on the table, nobody else hearing over the noise but Luke, Leia, and Chewie.

"Why is everybody just sitting here and talking?" he moaned. "Where's the food? I'm starving!"

"This doesn't make sense," Luke repeated from thirty minutes ago. "Those teenagers I heard talking stated that they were starving, yet I found them in the crowd and they're just talking."

Leia joined Han with moaning and putting her head on the table. "Don't these people eat around here?"

Ten minutes later, a louder noise than the usual talk of the cafeteria was heard. Leia, who had fallen asleep, jerked awake. Luke, Han, and Chewbacca on the other hand, who were talking amongst each other, jumped in surprise at the sudden outburst of noise outside of the room.

"What is that?" Leia slurred while still trying to completely wake herself up.

"I have no idea," Han replied. "Everyone's in here; no food, and now a lot of noise out there. These Jedi are so easy to understand."

"Be patient," Luke remarked. "I'm sure there's an explanation for all of-"

The rest of Luke's statement evaporated into the loud noise that suddenly came over the whole cafeteria, loud enough to deafen somebody on the other side of the planet. A giant mass of people came flooding into the room, Jedi spilling all over the aisles to get to a seat at the table. In the crowd, they all noticed Obi-Wan Kenobi trying to make his way through the Jedi to where a Mon Calamarian female was frantically waving him over. He finally reached her, hugged her, and then sat down beside her. A young Dreselian asked him something, pointing to his plate which he was now filling full of food and Obi-Wan and the woman burst into fits of laughter.

This was when Han and the others realized that food had finally arrived.

All sorts of food from practically every planet was on the table. Nubian duck, Barabel fruits, and even freshly dried choki from the Dune Sea on Tatooine sat on plates in the middle of the table for everyone to grab. All of the other Jedi had already started filling their plates from what Han and the others could see, but they didn't care; food had finally arrived, and they were more than happy to accept it.

More and more Jedi kept coming in from the doorway, and the long, loud line of Jedi waiting to get to the tables never seemed to end. Luke stared while he was eating at the enormous group of Jedi from what he could see still trying to get to seats.

"I think I know why there wasn't any food when we first arrived," Luke stated.

Han made a grunt through the food in his mouth, and then finished swallowing. "Why?"

"People wanted to get here early. It's now 1830 hours, so I'm guessing dinner started at 1820 hours. People got here early so they could get spots; apparently most of the time other people head off to dinner around 1810 hours."

Leia looked at the long line still waiting to eat. "Apparently,"

Luke merrily went along with eating his food. _I wonder how Mon Mothma's doing right about now_, Luke thought.

* * *

**Ah, now _this_ is a nice length!**


	3. Room and Board

Mon Mothma somehow got back to her apartment with a minute to spare. She quickly got dressed and cleaned herself off without Treesha's noticing, and then rushed over to Bail Organa's apartment.

She arrived there five minutes late, just as she remembered, and heard the exact same conversation that she heard when she first went to the dinner. They were all talking about the blockade around Naboo.

"Ah, Senator Mon Mothma," Bail welcomed.

"Senator Bail Organa," Mon Mothma replied in acknowledgment. "It is such a pleasure to see you once more."

"As it is to see you again, Senator," Bail said. "Please, sit."

Mon Mothma sat down on the couch beside Senator Organa. Across from her were Senators Palpatine and Fang Zar. They nodded in recognition. She gave a nod in return.

"Senator Palpatine," she started off, trying to keep the tone of disgust and pure hatred out of her voice. "Is there any news from Queen Amidala on this matter?"

"I am going to contact her tomorrow," Palpatine replied. "I heard from Chancellor Valorum that Jedi ambassadors are being sent."

"I hope they can do something about that blockade," Senator Zar put in. "If we're not careful, this could go to war. The Trade Federation is going too far with this issue."

Mon Mothma's mind was whirling. She was trying to remember exactly the conversation that they had that took three hours of their time. She knew that she started it off exactly how she did in the past, trying not to do anything that would trip her past in a negative way. They were all replying in the way that she remembered exactly. Then, Bail stood up as she remembered as well.

"Well, now that we are all here, shall we head off to dinner?" he offered.

"Of course," Palpatine stood up.

"I will be honored to," Mon Mothma joined Palpatine over to where Bail was standing.

"As will I," Fang Zar walked over to Bail Organa as well, and they all headed off to dinner.

………

Leia looked over at Han and Luke talking to each other in casual tones about things they did when they were younger. Luke was just telling Han about one time he blew a moister vaporator up right in his uncle's face when he was trying to show him that he was good at fixing them. While they were laughing, Leia turned her head to find Obi-Wan Kenobi. She still had the fact that they were in the past repeating in her head with a tint of doubt. It just seemed too impossible. All of it. None of it made sense to her. She knew it didn't to the other three, as well, but even Chewbacca was keeping himself preoccupied, occasionally listening to Han's and Luke's conversation and eating at the same time. The food tasted wonderful, but this was going too fast too quickly. Leia's head was spinning. Her foster father being alive, representing Alderaan as if it was never destroyed, Obi-Wan Kenobi, the same wise, aged man that she saw murdered by Darth Vader.

Leia's breath caught.

If they really _were_ back in time, which she kept trying to get herself to believe, that meant that her parents were most likely alive. Darth Vader was either a young man or was a teenager, as well as her unknown biological mother. Even Darth Vader's name alone left a bad taste in her mouth. Imagining him as a young and innocent child was like asking a native of Tatooine to imagine the Tusken Raiders walking up and bringing flowers.

Leia's mind came back to the present; well, at least what was _currently_ the present, to see Obi-Wan get up and say something to his two fellow Jedi and then walk out of the room.

"Luke?"

Luke looked over at Leia. "What is it?"

"Can you sense where Obi-Wan's going? Not even the Jedi sitting at that distinguished table are getting up."

Han then turned to face Leia. "Sweetheart-"

"_Han,"_

"All right, all right. Is Princess better?"

"You're impossible, you know that?"

"I try,"

"Just go on with what you were saying, Han,"

"I was just going to say that I'm not sure making Luke 'sense' out for Obi-Wan would be a great idea. You do remember what happened last time he did that, right?"

"Yes, but Luke's going to have to get used to doing it; I have a sinking feeling that we're going to be here for a while."

"Okay, but I was just saying-"

Luke chuckled and then held up a hand for the little argument to stop. "I appreciate your concern, Han, but Leia's right. I _am_ going to have to get used to this."

Chewbacca grunted his approval. Han gave him a look.

"So much for loyalty," he muttered irritably. Chewie, Luke, and Leia giggled.

Luke closed his eyes. Han looked over at Chewbacca.

"Make sure to be quiet, Chewie, he needs to concentrate," he told him.

"I'm not sure he can with all this talking going on," Leia said, trying to be as quiet as she could without letting her voice get drowned out by the rest of the chatter.

Luke's eyes opened in irritation. "Concentrating here; can you keep it down? I can hear every word you're saying!"

"Sorry," Han and Leia replied. Chewbacca grunted an apology.

"Don't be sorry, just be quiet!"

"Sorry!"

Luke looked like he was about to growl, but controlled himself. He closed his eyes once more…

Luke let himself into the Force. He felt every living, breathing Jedi in the room, sensing them all. Luke felt for the familiar presence of Obi-Wan Kenobi. At first, he couldn't decipher between the different Force signatures coming from all of the Jedi. It felt as though there was enough to fill the galaxy with Jedi alone. Luke took comfort in this, but then sadness came over him. Feeling all of these Jedi was reassuring and comforting, but it must have been a nightmare for Obi-Wan being used to feeling his comrades in the Force until they were all murdered. Luke realized that the emptiness he had always felt when he used to go into the Force wasn't normal; it was the loss of all of the Jedi.

Finally, Luke managed to go through a tangled web of Force signatures, and found a familiar feeling. He thought it was Obi-Wan, until he located where it was. Through the Force, he saw Yoda sitting beside a dark skinned male human, who was currently deep in conversation with him. _Yoda!_ Luke couldn't believe what he was sensing. Yoda had died right in front of him. Of course, Obi-Wan did as well, and Luke was currently trying to track him in a building full of Jedi that are supposed to be dead. Luke took a calming breath and resumed his search. A few minutes passed, and Luke sensed another familiar presence. It was very faint, _extremely_ faint in fact, but it was still there. The presence felt like it was millions of galaxies away, and the only reason Luke had the slightest _hope_ of finding it was because it was familiar to him, somehow. It was as if he knew it from a dream.

Luke knew he couldn't ponder on it, though. He had to find Obi-Wan. Pushing the small presence out of his mind, he continued his search for Obi-Wan. Another minute or two passed and Luke finally sensed him. Obi-Wan Kenobi; it was such a reassuring feeling to sense him once more. Luke could almost feel the desert sand whipping his hair into his face; he could almost hear his aunt's call saying that dinner was ready. Luke could almost smell the delicious dinner cooking. He could almost see his uncle telling him that he couldn't go to the Imperial Academy that year. Luke looked back at that and was grateful; he couldn't even begin to imagine himself in the Empire's navy.

Luke went back to finding out where Obi-Wan was. He pinpointed him in a room full of chairs with a giant window practically covering one wall. Coruscant's moons were appearing as the brilliant sunset lit the sky. Obi-Wan sat on one of the plushy seats, meditating on the mission that was going to come.

Luke's eyes opened. Leia, Han, and Chewbacca looked like they were about to fall asleep. The talking amongst the Jedi died down, and some were standing up, stretching and yawning. The Mon Calamarian woman that was sitting with Obi-Wan before he left stood up, rubbed her eyes, and walked out of the cafeteria. Just before she did, though, Luke distinctly heard the Dreselian man say something to her.

"I don't mean to sound greedy, but are you going to finish that puff cake?"

The woman laughed and handed her puff cake over to him. He ate it happily. She left the cafeteria, and soon after, other Jedi started to leave.

Luke looked once more at Han, Leia, and Chewbacca.

"He's meditating,"

Leia jerked up as if somebody had poked her with a needle. Han's head drooped, and then he made a loud snore and his head flew up, and Chewbacca jumped. All three of them looked over at Luke.

"What?"

"I said he's meditating,"

Han's eyelids drooped again. "Oh,"

Leia looked at her chronometer. "Wow, time flies,"

"_Don't_ say that, Leia; you're making me think of the fact that we're in the past." Luke replied.

Chewbacca grunted a question.

"It's 2130 hours, Chewie," Leia answered.

"We'd better start looking for a room. Considering how long it took for us to find our way to the bottom floor when we came from the garden." Han suggested.

Luke nodded. "That's the truth,"

They got up and followed a group of Jedi leaving the cafeteria. The group split into two factions; one saying they were heading off to bed and the other saying they were going to meditate. Luke and the others followed the ones heading off to bed.

The Jedi heading off to bed walked up a few sets of stairs, and then started splitting into smaller groups.

Han shrugged. "I guess they all live here, which means there's going to be lots of floors with lots of rooms."

Leia looked at all the doors that led down one of the many levels in that staircase area.

"There are so many of them," she muttered. "How are we going to know?"

"I have no idea," Han replied.

Chewbacca made a grumbling noise over at Luke.

"I suppose I could do that, Chewie," Luke answered. "Although I can't guarantee anything."

Luke closed his eyes and went into the Force once more. He sensed all of the Jedi heading off to bed in their quarters. Only a few amount of Jedi were somewhere else. Luke sensed into the rooms, seeing through the Force personal possessions in almost all of them. Luckily, he found two rooms on the 126th level, one room on the 53rd, and another unoccupied room on the 781st level.

"I found some rooms that aren't being used!" Luke exclaimed in disbelief.

Han looked uncomfortable. "Not being used, as in-"

"Nobody lives in them," Luke finished.

"Where?" Leia asked.

"Two rooms on level 126, one room on level 53, and one room on level 781," Luke answered.

"We have to find out what level we're on," Han said. "Leia, you go down the right to that hallway, Luke, you go left down the other hallway, Chewbacca, you-"

"I found it!" Leia exclaimed with a giggle.

Han looked at where she found it. "Or we could just go look at the obvious hologram in the middle of the hallway."

"We're currently on level 5," Luke looked over at Han, Leia, and Chewbacca. "We'd better take a lift,"

"I agree," Leia replied.

They headed over to a lift that was at the end of the hallway. When they entered, they went over to the pad and pressed in level 53.

"So, who's sleeping in that room?" Han asked as they looked out of the transparisteel wall showing the bright lights of Coruscant from the different skyscrapers.

"Leia, you'll sleep in the room that's on level 53," Luke told her. "Han and Chewbacca will sleep in the rooms on level 126, and I'll get the room on level 781."

They all agreed. Turning to face the part of the lift that faced out to the skyscrapers of Coruscant, Leia, Han, Luke, and Chewbacca stood waiting to reach level 53.


	4. Explanations and New Problems

Mon Mothma smiled as she said her farewells to the other senators. _That didn't go as bad as expected_, she thought. It was actually a success; Mon Mothma said and did everything exactly as she remembered it, and the reactions were the same as she remembered. It was a successful dinner.

Mon Mothma walked out of Senator Bail Organa's quarters. She was caught off guard at the fact that the visit lasted four hours instead of three, although she didn't worry about it; everything went exactly as she remembered it, so she just underestimated the timing when she spoke to Leia. It was a good thing she spoke to them, too. If she told them to meet her in another three hours, they would have to wait a whole hour to see her.

Mon Mothma got back to her apartment and sat down on her couch. Nothing in her memory said she did anything of importance after the dinner, and her maid, Treesha, would have left by now. So it was just Mon Mothma. She sat and thought about why anyone or anything would want to bring her back to the past, especially to the part where the Republic first began to fall.

That was when Mon Mothma realized it.

Someone or something brought her and her allies to the beginning of the downfall of the Republic. She supposed she was there since she knew what happened, but the real reason was to show Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca the true devastation that happened. Whatever was going on, Mon Mothma knew she had to do what she did in the past, no matter how terrible the outcome was.

Time itself depended on it.

………

Han, Luke, and Chewbacca stood waiting in the lift to reach level 126. They had already dropped Leia off in her room, and counted how many doors they had to walk down to get to her quarters for later purposes. She was ten doors down from the lift.

The lift finally slowed down and the threesome walked out. The lights were dimmed, signaling the time to sleep. Why the Jedi would go to bed at such an early time didn't make sense to Han, but he didn't really know anything about the Jedi, so he couldn't really complain. Luke led him and Chewbacca down three doors, when Luke pointed to the third door and then the fourth.

"These are the two empty rooms," he told them. Han nodded and walked into the third room, Chewbacca going into the fourth. The doors closed behind them, and Han heard Luke walk off to the lift. The lift doors snapped shut, and Luke was gone.

Chewbacca walked into Han's room, sitting on the bed. Or, at least what Han thought was going to be a bed. It turned out to be a sleep couch. A desk sat against one wall, while the sleep couch was beneath the window on the back wall. A dresser was on the other wall, and a nightstand beside the sleep couch.

"Well, buddy," he started off to Chewbacca as he took off his boots and belt. "It's not much, but it'll have to be home for right now."

Chewie grunted an approval and went back to his room. Han settled into the sleep couch, dimmed the light on the nightstand, and went to sleep.

Han jumped awake in, what seemed to him, the middle of the night. When he looked out the window, the moons of Coruscant were still in full bloom as only a few vehicles went whizzing by. _What woke me up?_ Han thought. _I was having a nice dream, too. What…?_

Han turned to hear noise coming from the doorway. Apparently, there was movement outside in the hallway.

"What is going on?" he slurred through his sleepiness. Han felt like falling asleep right where he was, especially when he looked at his chronometer and realized that it was 0437 hours.

Han moaned and collapsed back on his sleep couch. He tried to go back to sleep, but he kept on hearing the noise. At first it just sounded like shuffling feet, but then a low buzz started up, turning into small chattering conversation, and finally ending up as full blown conversation. The loud noise could not be stifled through the pillows that Han put over his face and the door that lead to the hallway.

After putting on his boots and belt, Han made his way over to the doorway and the door opened up. Crowds of Jedi were walking down the hallway, many of them younglings. Most of the younglings were Han's current age of nine. They were all talking to each other, looking like they themselves were still half asleep. Han looked at them in disbelief. _Why are they up so early?_ He asked himself.

Chewbacca peeked out of his quarters from the next door down, groaning as well. Han looked over at him.

"I know, Chewie," he said sympathetically. "Come on, let's go. If they're doing it here, they're probably doing it all over the Temple."

Chewbacca groaned once more, but followed Han out of his room. They followed the crowd to the stairs and lifts.

Han stared at the younglings taking the stairs. "They can't possibly be serious; it'll take hours to get to the bottom."

Han's question was answered when he saw the younglings make a little progress and then stop on the next level down to see if a lift was available there. They were merely seeing if they could take a lift on another level. Chewbacca told Han through a grunt that if they ran, they could squeeze into one of the lifts with some other younglings before the door closed. Han and Chewbacca made a run for it inside the lift. They managed to get in and the doors shut. A youngling squished right by the pad pushed in for the main level. The lift headed down. Through the transparisteel, the sky was slowly turning purple and red as the sun started to creep over the horizon. Han watched in amazement at the beauty of it. He had never seen a sunrise as beautiful as the one on Coruscant. Chewbacca was impressed and awed by its tremendous beauty as well. The younglings enjoyed watching it, too, and one of them spoke out excitedly.

"Another day, another adventure!" he exclaimed happily, his enthusiasm sparking it in the rest of them, including Han and Chewbacca, who's sleepiness evaporated in an instant. Han and Chewbacca laughed with the other younglings. On the way, the lift stopped at level 53, and some more Jedi, now not only younglings, but also eleven and twelve-year-olds came on. Leia managed to get into the same lift as well, and after a while, she got to Han and Chewbacca.

"I can't believe they get up this early," Leia sounded grumpy, but Han merely smiled.

"It's not that bad," he replied simply. "The sunrise is amazing."

Leia looked out the transparisteel lift to see the sun creeping over the shorter buildings. Her face lit up with the sunlight. She appeared to notice something, and the younglings were starting to shift again as somebody tried to get to them. Han looked over and saw Luke squeezing through between two younglings and finally getting to them. He smiled when he reached them.

"Good morning," he said to them.

Although Han was cheered up by the youngling, he still had to say it. "Morning is an understatement."

"I have to agree with that, but the view is amazing," Luke replied.

"I know," Leia agreed.

"What do you think we should do now?" Han asked.

"Well, going to breakfast would be good for starters," Luke answered.

Leia's eyes widened as she looked at her chronometer. "At 0502 hours? I don't think so."

Two minutes later, the lift stopped once more on level 36. The doors opened, but only one human fourteen-year-old Jedi could squeeze in. The doors closed once more, and they finally reached the first level.

The doors opened, and everyone spilled out, talking loudly the whole entire time. Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca walked out as well, following where they were going. They weren't going to breakfast, however. The younglings and teenagers split up into many groups, individuals going in different directions. Luke turned over to the others.

"All right, apparently we're not going to breakfast yet," he said to them. "Do you guys want to go see if we can start finding our way through this place, perhaps to the garden?"

Han shrugged. "Sounds fine to me,"

The foursome walked into the main room, walking up the stairs that led to the next level. Luke at least remembered that much. After that, they had to figure their way out. They turned right at the top of the stairs and followed the hallway. The hallway kept on going for a while, but then had a choice to either go straight or turn right once more. Leia turned right, and Luke went straight. Han and Chewbacca waited at the area where the turn occurred.

Three minutes later, Leia came running back. Luke followed a minute later.

"The garden is to the right," Leia informed them.

They all ran down the right hallway, finally running into the garden. The bright light of the sunrise stung their eyes. They shielded their eyes with their hands, and sat beneath a tree that provided shade. Lying down, they all started to relax. Unfortunately, relaxing turned into sleeping. Han's thoughts drifted away…

………

Mon Mothma yawned as she stretched and got up from her bed. Looking at her chronometer, she rubbed her eyes. It was 0700 hours, her usual wake-up time. She remembered what would happen for that day. She knew she wasn't doing anything of importance around 1200 hours, so that's when she would meet the other Rebels. She yawned once more, and then got up, trying to remember if she had to do anything. _Oh, dear_, she thought. _The Senate is in session today._

Mon Mothma sighed as she got dressed into proper senatorial clothing. Her maid, Treesha, was already fixing breakfast.

"Good morning, my lady," she said politely to Mon Mothma.

"Good morning, Treesha," Mon Mothma replied. "Pleasant day, don't you think?"

"Oh, yes, ma'am," she answered with a smile. "Your breakfast is ready on the table for you, my lady,"

"Very good," Mon Mothma headed off into the dining room. She was remembering what the Senate meeting would be about. She knew that the Jedi ambassadors would have already departed far earlier that day, and they probably would have made contact with the Trade Federation by now. Which also meant that Palpatine will try to talk to Queen Amidala through communications and lose contact with her after session in the Senate was over. That would cause invasion, rescue, new Chancellors, and war.

Mon Mothma finished her breakfast and headed out of her apartment. She walked towards the Senate building, not bothering to worry about Leia and the others.

She knew they could take care of themselves.

………

Luke's eyes lazily opened up as he sighed in relaxation. The sunlight was bright, warm, and comforting, and feeling his fellow Jedi around was extremely relaxing. He looked over at Leia. She was fast asleep. Han and Chewbacca were as well. Luke simply closed his eyes again. He didn't want to disturb them. Then a thought occurred. Luke's eyes opened once more, and he looked at his chronometer. He could barely read the time because his eyes wanted to close again, but once he was positive about the time, his eyes opened completely and widened as large as they could go. All sleepiness and fatigue dissipated into nothingness.

"1100 hours?!" he exclaimed in his shock. Leia, Han, and Chewbacca jumped awake and sat up immediately. Leia looked over at Luke.

"What?"

"It's 1100 hours!"

"_1100 hours?"_

They all stood up quickly and stared around. The sun was bright and high in the sky, and practically nobody was in the garden. Only a teenager or two could be seen, and they were meditating.

Han looked worried. "Where is everybody?"

"I don't know," Leia replied. Chewbacca grunted a suggestion.

"'Class'?" Luke was confused. "What do you mean 'class'?"

Chewbacca replied. Han looked over at Chewie.

"Are you saying that they go to class?"

Chewbacca nodded. Leia sighed.

"Great," she said. "Just great,"

They all got up; looking around to make sure that nobody was paying attention. Leia looked at her chronometer.

"We've only got one hour before Senator Mon Mothma will meet us outside of the Jedi Temple," she told them. "We need to go."

Leia leading the way, the foursome found their way to the door that led inside. Walking down the hallway for a while, they heard activity in the rooms, including lightsabers clashing. They walked a little longer and then took a left, walking straight until they ran into the giant stairs that led to the main room. Walking down the giant stairs, Leia led them right outside. She sat down on a step and looked over at them.

"We're not leaving this spot until she gets here," she told them crisply. "I don't want to risk missing her."

"All right," Han replied, sitting down beside her. "Maybe we can talk about what's going on around here."

"I'm sure we have plenty of time to," Luke answered, taking a seat on the other side of Leia. Chewbacca sat beside Han.

Crowds of people gathered behind a no-tourist line and looked up in awe and amazement at the four of them sitting on the steps, and then looked at the rest of the Jedi Temple. Luke blushed.

"Can we please talk inside?" he asked Leia desperately. "I hate being gawked at."

"You'll live, Luke," Leia looked like she wouldn't budge even if the planet was about to explode.

Luke sighed. "Well, at least nobody can hear what we're talking about here."

Chewbacca reminded them that they only had forty minutes.

"Well, why do you think we're here in this time?" Han asked the others.

Leia simply shrugged. "I have no possible idea on what could be the reason, although there might be many."

They continued to talk about that matter for forty more minutes when they saw Mon Mothma show up. She looked at them, and then her eyes flicked to an area less seen by tourists. They walked over there casually, and then met up with her there.

"Mon Mothma, you have to tell us how to do this, we have no idea what we're doing here," Han pleaded.

"Well, I'm sure you all have found out that Jedi wake up at sunrise," Mon Mothma told them. Han looked miserable.

"Are you saying that they do that everyday?" he asked in horror. "We slept until 1100 hours in the garden because of that!"

"Another thing is that the garden is called the Garden of a Thousand Fountains," she informed.

Leia looked at her in all seriousness. "Do you know anything of importance? Such as what is a clan? And why they call older people 'Master' besides the obvious respectful title for their elders?"

Mon Mothma looked up at the Temple and the back at them. "The term 'Master' is a respectful term for a Jedi of higher rank. They could possibly be the same age as you, but if they're a higher rank, you call them 'Master'. It's a term of respect for them. There are four ranks: youngling, initiate, Padawan, Jedi Knight, and Jedi Master. Younglings are obviously the youngest, going from the nursery all the way to age four or five, then they become initiates, and their training starts; they remain initiates until they're thirteen unless they get chosen to be a Padawan. They train to be a Padawan for a Jedi Knight or Master. A Padawan is a learner to a Jedi Knight or Master. Now, for the rank of Jedi Knight, it is when a Padawan learner passes the trials when his or her Master thinks he or she is ready. If the Padawan passes the trials, he or she becomes a Jedi Knight. Mastery is awarded to a master Jedi, pretty much. A Master is given a seat on the Jedi Council, and is the highest of all Jedi. About these clans, though, I don't know as much about. All I know is that younglings are divided into clans and taught by a Master. That's all I know of that matter."

"At least it's something," Leia replied. "Do you have any idea why we might be here?"

"An idea, only," Mon Mothma answered.

"We'll take anything,"

"Well, I don't know who or how, but it might be somebody's trying to show you the true devastation the Republic took when the Empire took over, considering this is when Palpatine became Supreme Chancellor of the Republic. I'm probably just here because I know what happened and can help you out. Of course, this all is only in theory."

"But it makes sense," Luke said, thinking about it. "It would make sense for somebody to be trying to show us, but the next question is why. And the question after that is how."

"Who knows," Mon Mothma looked at her chronometer. "I have to go; I have a meeting with some Senators. We can meet again tomorrow at 0730 hours. I will see you then."

At that, Mon Mothma rushed off, and the four of them went back into the Jedi Temple. The explanation Mon Mothma gave was still whizzing around in Luke's mind, but then something else popped into his head. That little familiar feeling somehow managed to pop into his head again. That feeling he felt at dinner. The feeling that felt like it was a million galaxies away. _What _is_ that?_ Luke had absolutely no idea what it could be, but it would not leave his head. He paused, leaning against the wall. Leia turned around.

"What is it, Luke?" she asked him.

"It's something I sensed last night. It felt so distant, so far away I didn't even worry about it, but on the other hand, it felt familiar in a way. I don't know what it is."

Han raised an eyebrow. "Wow, the Force is real informative, isn't it?"

Luke tried to figure it out some more, and then finally gave up. They wandered about the Temple, trying to get their bearings, and then went off to eat lunch.

Four days later, they managed to know where mostly everything was on the first floor. They still have no idea on how they got there in the first place, why, and by whom, but at least they were starting to catch on to their surroundings. Luke still had that feeling bugging him, except it wasn't little anymore. It was overpowering, overwhelming, he could never get it out of his head, and he couldn't think about anything else, yet he still couldn't identify it.

Leia stood off in the distance. Somehow, they managed to get lost in a hangar bay that was in the Temple. Han was too interested in the ships to worry about finding his way out, and stood admiring the beauty with Chewbacca. Luke simply continued to sit where he was, rubbing his head.

Suddenly, they all heard a noise. A ship was coming in for landing in the hangar bay. It looked like a normal transport ship, and when the doors opened, Luke's head felt like it was about to split. That feeling that kept pestering him had suddenly become a full-fledged migraine. Everything was spinning, and his head was pounding as if somebody was throwing him headfirst against one of the ships that were in the bay. Through this, though he could strangely only see one thing clearly; a young boy, dressed in torn and ragged clothing, his small round face looking around in awe at the amazing ships around him. His intense blue eyes studying every speck of the room, and his sandy-brown hair whipped around his face as he rapidly turned his head to examine something else.

Leia's hand went to Luke's shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Luke could barely hear her, and stood up. He couldn't hold his own weight, though and his knees buckled. She caught him underneath the arm, and sat him down again. Han and Chewbacca came running over. Luke could only see that one boy. _How do I know him?_ Luke asked this question over and over again, until the only thing he could hear was the breathing of someone in a respirator, and the only thing he could see was a tall figure in black with a red lightsaber…

Leia looked at Luke in worry. "Not again,"

Han crouched in front of him and waved his hand in his face. "His eyes are open, but they're unfocused. I don't get it."

The ship that had landed took off once more, and the three passengers were now clearly visible. Leia, Han, and Chewbacca quickly hid Luke behind them, and looked to see Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and a young boy with blue eyes and sandy-brown hair. Leia couldn't tear her stare from the boy's eyes. She gasped. Those eyes…they were…they were Luke's eyes.

………

Mon Mothma sadly shook her head as the Senate roared "Vote now!" over and over again. Queen Amidala stood on her platform in the center of the Senate room. Chancellor Valorum had his face in his hands.

"And so it begins," Mon Mothma muttered under her breath. Senator Palpatine would now become Chancellor Palpatine. Chancellor Valorum has now been officially voted out of office.

And with the fall of Chancellor Valorum comes the fall of the Republic.

………

Han continued shaking Luke to snap him out of whatever problem he was going through. Chewbacca, on the other hand, noticed Leia staring at the two Jedi walking out of the hangar bay. He looked over and saw a boy with them. Chewbacca sniffed at the air. His eyes widened. He couldn't have just smelled what he did! Chewie knew that smell anywhere; it was the smell of Darth Vader. It was a very small tint of it, but it was still there. Chewbacca's sensitive nose always could detect the smell of the Lord of the Sith. Darth Vader had a grotesque smell of burnt flesh, mechanical limbs, and a smell of sand, ozone, and plenty of other small smells. He also had his distinctive smell that each and every being had. Chewbacca detected the distinctive smell, as well as the smell of sand. Chewie growled. He wasn't completely sure if the boy was who he thought he was, but he was going to keep a close eye on him. This boy had to be an Imperial officer in the future serving under Darth Vader. There was no other explanation to it.

Leia finally took her eyes away from the door that the two Jedi and the boy walked through after it closed behind them. Luke made a moan, and jerked. Leia quickly looked back at him.

"Luke, are you all right?"

Luke was covered in sweat and was breathing quickly and heavily, gasping for air as if he was under water for the longest time and was about to run out of breath. He put his head in his hands and closed his eyes. They opened once more once he managed to calm himself down. He looked over at Leia.

"I'm fine," he said.

Han looked disbelieving. "Yeah, and Leia's having an affair with Governor Tarkin."

"Very funny, Han," Luke replied.

Chewbacca made a growl as relief filled Leia. She so was glad to see Luke all right that she didn't even notice Chewbacca's growl. Han looked over at Chewie as he growled some more, snapping Leia into focus as well. Luke stood up and shakily faced Chewbacca.

"What is it, Chewie?" Han asked the growling Wookiee. Chewbacca replied with another low, menacing growl.

"An Imperial?"

"What?" Leia was caught off guard. Luke apparently was as well. Han stared at Chewbacca as he made his explanation.

"He smelled like Darth Vader? Don't be silly, Chewbacca, Darth Vader's probably a twenty-year-old guy attaching thermal detonators to people's clothes somewhere else."

Luke looked over at Han. "Who's the 'he' that Chewbacca's talking about?"

"That kid who went walking through,"

"I see."

Luke seemed to think about what he had just heard, sitting down once more. Leia didn't even notice, though. _He smelled like Darth Vader? That can't be possible. It just can't. Han's probably right; he's probably some twenty-five-year-old man running around doing assassination jobs for somebody or plotting the destruction of the Old Republic._

Chewbacca didn't look convinced, but he became silent. Han looked over at Luke and Leia and smiled.

"Come on, guys, let's see if we can find our way to dinner; I'm starving."

Luke and Leia followed him out, Chewbacca right behind them. Leia grasped the concept of dinner very tightly; at least that was one thing that was familiar in a pleasant way.


	5. Hi, I'm your father

Mon Mothma walked back into her apartment after the Senate session, sighing heavily. Her maid, Treesha, walked into the room to welcome here.

"Hello, my lady," she said. "Would you like me to get anything for you?"

"No, thank you, Treesha," Mon Mothma replied. Treesha walked off to continue with her other duties as Mon Mothma collapsed onto her couch. _Wonderful,_ she thought to herself bitterly. _Now all I have to do is watch the Republic slowly rot from the inside. _Mon Mothma was dying to do something to prevent it, but she knew that it would have drastic consequences. She would just have to play along as she told herself before she went to the Senate session. But now, Palpatine would become Chancellor, and then there would be a Separatist movement, and then…well, she didn't even want to think about it. The Jedi would be killed, even that poor boy…with such a promise in his life. He was only twenty-three when he was killed. _What was his name again? It started with an 'a'…An…Anak…Anakin!_

Mon Mothma almost choked.

_Skywalker! Blast it all, I should have remembered! If Luke and Leia see their father…_

Mon Mothma couldn't even begin to imagine what would happen. She got up to leave, when she remembered that she didn't leave her apartment that day until the late evening. Mon Mothma prayed that they didn't run into their father before she could get to them to warn them, somehow. They just couldn't find out about him. They just couldn't.

………

Han sighed as they spent thirty minutes waiting in a giant line to get to the cafeteria. Chewbacca, Luke, and Leia were standing beside him. Chewbacca grunted in his impatience, his stomach rumbling. Han's thoughts were elsewhere, though. _Since we really are in this time frame that must mean that Leia's parents, both biological and foster, are alive; maybe if I find out where they live, she'll be happy; she's seemed pretty depressed lately. I don't know what's bothering her…maybe Darth Vader. I think Leia was trying to tell me something about Darth Vader before this whole mess started, but she never got the chance. Maybe I should ask now._

Han gulped and gathered up his courage. Facing Leia, he opened his mouth to speak.

"Leia," he said, getting her attention.

"Hm?" Leia didn't seem to be in the same galaxy, let alone room.

Han still pressed on however. "Leia, you were trying to tell me something about Darth Vader before this whole 'time traveling' thing showed up. What was it that you were going to tell me?"

Luke looked over at Leia. "You were going to tell him without me knowing?"

"Tell me what?" Han was starting to get interested. Apparently, so was Chewie, since he faced the others and started listening to the conversation.

Leia sighed. "I was going to tell you, Luke, but when I found out the news about the Imperials, I told Han I'd tell him on the way. I didn't get the chance, though."

"What the blazes are you going to tell me then?" Han asked, exasperated.

"Han…well, you see…" Leia tried to say.

Luke finished for her. "Han, Darth Vader is our father."

Han gaped, as well as Chewbacca. For the whole entire wait in line, Han couldn't say anything. Darth Vader…the father of Leia and Luke? It was impossible! How could someone that wretched and scum-like be their father? Chewbacca was apparently taken aback as well, since he didn't make a single noise throughout all of dinner. Luke and Leia had their own conversation, though.

"So, who do you think that boy was?" Luke asked Leia curiously.

Leia blinked. "What boy?"

"The boy who was with Obi-Wan and his Master, Qui-Gon Jinn,"

"Oh, that boy! Um, well, I don't know who he is, Luke…I don't have Force perception…"

Luke narrowed his eyes. "Something about him makes you uneasy."

"Yes, it does." Leia admitted. "I don't know what it is about him. Luke, he's got your exact eye color for goodness sake! The same look, the same feeling, I don't know what it is!"

"That doesn't mean anything, Leia," Luke brushed her statement off. "Where do you think he is now? Maybe we could ask him who he is."

Leia shook her head. "I don't know where he is, and anyway; we don't know who he is, so we can't risk talking to him. What if it does something to our future?"

Luke giggled. "Leia, I doubt one simple question will change anything of great importance."

"I guess so," Leia sighed. "Well, then shall we go find him? The best place to start would be to find Obi-Wan."

Luke nodded. "Very well, then."

Han and Chewbacca watched the two of them get up. Chewbacca, still unable to speak, merely watched them start to walk away. Han, though, managed to get some words out.

"L-Leia? Where are you going?"

Leia and Luke turned around for a moment.

"To meditate," Luke answered. They then swiftly turned away and walked off.

………

Mon Mothma waited anxiously for the afternoon to come so she could go to the Senate, and more importantly, go see Luke, Leia, Chewbacca, and Han. Mon Mothma was thinking of possibilities of what could happen if Luke and Leia saw their father, even though she was training extremely hard not to think about it. She could just see it; Luke and Leia staring and then blurting out that they were his children, or _something_. For all she knew, they could interfere with something that was important for the future.

Mon Mothma sighed and collapsed on her couch, checking her chronometer. _Two more hours…I don't know if I'll be able to stand this waiting. I'll still have to go through the Senate session before I can get to them…_Mon Mothma groaned aloud; everything seemed to be going wrong all at once.

………

Leia sighed as she sat in the meditation room. The window that covered one entire wall attracted her attention once more as Luke continued to meditate on the plushy circular chairs. Her patience thinned as she waited for him to find out where Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, and the boy were. After what seemed an eternity, Luke opened his eyes. Leia ran over to where he was sitting.

"Have you found them?" she asked him.

Luke nodded. "The boy's alone right now. I think he's just waiting for something."

"Where is he, though?" Leia asked.

"That's the problem; he's on the highest floor."

Leia groaned as she sat herself down on one of the seats. "Great,"

"Hey, don't lose faith now," Luke replied. "We'll get to him. Come on; let's go find Han and Chewie."

Leia sighed. "They'd better be in the mess hall, or we're going to go up without them."

"All right," Luke agreed.

The twins walked out of the meditation room and descended three flights of stairs, leading to the hallway. They followed the hallway to the mess hall, and looked inside. Most of the Jedi had left to go wander around or meditate. The sunset gleamed through the windows, landing on Han and Chewbacca on one table. Leia motioned for them to get over there. Han and Chewbacca got up and walked towards them.

"Can you two talk now?" Leia asked them.

Han nodded. "Yeah, we can."

"Good," Luke giggled. "Because we found the boy."

"Why are we so concerned about that kid?" Han asked, and Chewbacca agreed with a grunt.

"I don't know, really," Luke's eyes clouded as he thought about it. "There's just something…familiar about him."

"That makes perfect sense," Han replied sarcastically. "So where is he, anyway?"

"He's on the top floor," Leia answered before Luke.

Chewbacca made a sarcastic growl that pretty much said what they were all going to say, 'Wonderful'.

Luke looked optimistic, though. "Come on, guys; let's get going."

They all headed off, Leia's mind whirling. She wanted to find out who that boy was, and why he seemed so familiar. They walked over to a lift, walked in, and pressed the highest floor. The turbolift began to climb upward, and they all were silent in contemplation.

………

As the Senate was talking about issues that Mon Mothma had heard before, her mind wandered. She was still wondering if the others had run into Anakin Skywalker. She prayed that they didn't. Suddenly, Senators began to leave; the session was over. Mon Mothma sighed in relief and took off as quickly as she dared, heading towards the nearest air bus stop. The sooner she got to the Temple, the better.

………

The turbolift slowed down and finally stopped after about ten minutes. Luke's insides churned; before he was curious and a little excited, but now he was getting nervous. What if it was something bad? Luke's hands twitched a little bit as they stepped out of the lift. Leia turned to face him.

"Where is he?" she asked.

"Um," Luke sensed out, and felt the boy's presence nearby; very nearby. "He's down this hallway. Follow me."

Luke led the group as they walked down the hall, turning left at the end. Luke froze immediately. The boy was standing right there in front of a closed door. He was merely pacing or rocking back and forth; he seemed nervous.

Watching the boy, Luke pushed his nervousness away. He walked towards the boy.

"Hello there," he said warmly.

The boy smiled back, his blue eyes showing fear. "Hi,"

Leia walked up towards him as well. "What's your name?"

"My name?" the boy blinked. "What's yours?"

Luke giggled at the boy's curiosity. "We asked you first,"

"Well, okay…" the boy sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. "My name's Anakin Skywalker."


	6. Repercussions

The air bus stopped at the Jedi Temple, and tourists from planets all over the Republic got off and stared in amazement, but Mon Mothma wasn't there to stare. She rushed up the stairs, desperately searching for Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca.

She ran to the mess hall first, and after thoroughly searching from the doorway, she realized they weren't there.

Panic rose inside her as she frantically thought of where else they could be. _Oh, please, please don't find him,_ she thought desperately. _Please…_

………

Luke and Leia Skywalker stared at the boy who just introduced himself as their father. They gaped, too. Han's jaw dropped with Chewbacca's. Anakin merely looked back with an uncomfortable look on his face.

"Um, is there something wrong with my name?" he asked with uncertainty.

Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca continued to stare. And stare. And stare.

The realization that their father was standing before them hit Luke like a hammer. _That's my father,_ he kept repeating in his head. All the memories of his father as he knew him flooded him in a sudden pang of emotion. Luke felt like he was about to pass out. He was sure Leia felt the same way until he felt anger and confusion rise in her. He quickly looked over at her and saw her eyes gleam with hatred. The good thing was that she was too shocked over the news to be able to do anything yet.

Luke tried to get some words, _any_ words out of his mouth, but he couldn't. He was too shocked. Memories of Darth Vader flashed through his mind. Bespin. Hoth. The Death Star. Endor. It all hit him so quickly and so hard that he almost collapsed.

Suddenly, the door opened, and Anakin looked to see someone beckon him inside. He walked inside, and Luke sensed Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon exiting the room. He managed to get himself to quickly grab Leia's arm and grab Han's arm. Holding on to them tightly, he ran off down the hallway with Chewbacca barely managing to keep up.

………

The air taxi stopped right in front of the temple, and once again, Mon Mothma flung herself out and rushed up the stairs. She had no idea how or where she would find them, but she knew she had to. _Interesting how I seem to be throwing myself out of a lot of air taxis lately…_she thought to herself with slight amusement.

Mon Mothma searched frantically around the main entrance, too apprehensive about entering any further due to fear of the Jedi Masters finding her. There had to be some way of contacting them.

Mon Mothma suddenly had the crazy idea that if she waited outside and called frantically in her head to Luke, he might hear it. She knew she wasn't Force-sensitive, but Luke always seemed to know when something was wrong, so it was worth a try. After all, it was the only lead she had.

………

Luke leaned against the wall of the turbolift as it rushed down to the main floor of the temple. He didn't exactly know where he was going to go or where he would take the others, but he just wanted to get as far away as he could from his father. He still couldn't get it out of his head. _"My name is Anakin Skywalker."_ The mere thought of what he would grow up to be gave Luke chills going up his spine. He looked over at the others to see if they were all right. Leia was just staring at the floor with her mouth slightly open.

Shockingly, it was actually Han who spoke first, trying to cheer up the mood.

"Well…um, that…certainly…er, wasn't, um…what we expected…" he said in rasps of breath. Apparently Leia's loss for words evaporated the moment Han spoke.

"That can't be him! Darth Vader cannot be…him…" she continued to repeat over and over again silently. Chewbacca and Luke remained silent.

Suddenly, Luke felt Mon Mothma calling out blindly for help. His senses tingled, but dread suddenly overtook him. Leia, Han, and Chewbacca looked over immediately.

"You're not going to collapse again, are you?" Han asked.

"Oh, no…" Luke muttered.

_Mon Mothma, what are you doing?!_ Luke thought to himself desperately. _Stop! You're going to attract the entire Jedi Order! _

………

As Mon Mothma continued to look for Luke and the others, she continued her plea for help. Hoping that he would sense it, Mon Mothma waited outside of the Temple. Pacing back and forth in anxiety and impatience, Mon Mothma sighed deeply and tried to keep calm. She prayed that Luke and the others wouldn't run into their father.

………

As the turbolift came to a stop at the bottom floor, Luke rushed out the moment the doors opened, the other three practically tripping over their short legs to keep up. Jedi all over seemed to have slowed their pace or stopped completely. Panicking, Luke started to run towards the main entrance.

Two Jedi Masters began to walk in the direction Luke was running. Luke's panic meter went up one hundred notches and he scrambled towards the stairs. Leia, Chewbacca, and Han ran their legs off as they caught up with him.

Luke's panic caused him to be clumsy in his run. Accidentally stepping on his robe, Luke did a backside first fall down the stairs, and then dived down the rest of them. Leia, Han, and Chewie had the same issue, and all four of them came tumbling down in the most ridiculous fashion.

The Jedi Masters started to run towards the entrance. Through the tumbling, Luke could catch glimpses of them rushing towards the stiars.

_Oh,_ he thought. _Oh, this is bad._

………

Little did they know that as they rolled down the stairs, a blue mist distracted the Jedi who heard Mon Mothma's plea. Seeming completely dazed and unaware of the four of them nearly breaking their necks on the stairs, all of the Jedi resumed their duties.

A voice sighed. "Whew, that was close."

Another voice, rather exasperated, replied. "They're as ridiculous as you."

"What?" The first voice sounded affronted.

The second voice, more mature, let out a sigh.

As Luke and the others came to a tumbling halt at the bottom of the stairs, every part of his body ached. Bruises blossomed all over and he heard Mon Mothma running towards him. Luke was praying that the Jedi Masters would somehow miss them, although he knew it was impossible. For some reason, though, the Jedi never came. The only person who came was Mon Mothma, and she dragged all four of them over to the side before they attracted any attention.

………

"_What the blazes were you thinking?" _

Luke was feeling nauseated, angry, embarrassed, and panicked at the same time, causing his voice to come out louder than he expected.

Mon Mothma looked panicked as well. "I was trying to contact you, but I didn't have any means of doing so; it's urgent."

Leia took a deep breath as she blinked her eyes repeatedly to get the spinning sensation out of her head. "What is so urgent that we had to kill ourselves to find you?"

"I didn't think you all would panic that much," Mon Mothma admitted, perhaps a little embarrassed.

"Well, if you didn't have any means of contacting us...well, then why did Luke panic...and...what?" Han was bewildered as to what was going on.

Mon Mothma took a deep breath. "I...Did you...Have you met any Jedi recently?"

Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca all blinked in utter confusion. "What?"

"Well, you must have met some Jedi while you've been here!" Mon Mothma insisted.

Chewbacca stared at her for a moment, then growled a reply; _We met Obi-Wan Kenobi, a couple of younglings, and...Darth Vader..._

At first, the senator looked relieved for some strange reason, but then once Chewbacca's last mentioned name clicked in her mind, her eyes widened in shock and panic.

"What?! Darth Vader?"

"Yes, Mon Mothma; we just met Darth Vader about five minutes ago," Leia explained.

Luke sighed. "He was _Anakin Skywalker_ not _Darth Vader_."

Any relief, or color for that matter, showing in Mon Mothma's face drained. "Anakin Skywalker?"

"Yeah," Han replied hoarsly. "We just ran into him...he was...he was a _kid_...ah, blasterbolts, he was even a sweet looking kid..."

"You ran into Skywalker?" Mon Mothma's voice began to rise in panic.

"What's the matter with that?" Luke said indignantly.

"You can't meet him!" the senator hissed. "Anything you could do to him could seriously alter something!"

"What are babbling about altering things?" Han was starting to get irritated.

"Han Solo, we are in the past, and since we are in the past, anything that we do affects our future." She explained quickly. "If you do anything with him, it could seriously affect us in the long run; what if you made him late for a mission, or you somehow got him hurt? That boy will grow up to be an extremely powerful Jedi Knight fighting in the Clone Wars. If something happens to him before that, the Republic will fall completely during the Clone Wars, and it won't turn into an Empire; it'll be split, with a Confederacy living on their own and having their own governments! There will have been no Empire, which is a good thing, but then what about the rest of us? Everything happens for a reason! If you change _anything_, anything at all, something detrimental could happen!"

Han, Luke, Leia, and Chewbacca all blinked. Han cleared his throat.

"Um, could you repeat that part about..."

"...Anakin becoming a great Jedi Knight?" Leia asked.

_...How we could affect the Clone Wars? _Chewbacca asked.

"...The 'Confederacy'?" Luke asked.

"..._everything?_" Han finished.

Mon Mothma took an exasperated breath. "If you do anything to Anakin, it might spell trouble for us, and trillions of other lives."

Han patted Mon Mothma on the arm. "See? Now wasn't that a lot easier to say?"

"Not really, no," the senator replied. Luke put his face in his hands.

Mon Mothma looked around; it was late at night. "Listen," she said quietly. "Whatever you do, avoid your father as much as you can...and what about Darth Vader? Where did you find him?"

"Um..." Luke started off; he didn't want to tell Mon Mothma the secret about their connection to Vader.

"We saw him the other day," Leia said hastily. "Nasty sort, really. You could already tell he was going to be a Sith."

Han raised his eyebrows at her, but a kick in his shin made his expression change rather quickly.

Mon Mothma sighed. "Please, be careful around Skywalker; _and_ Vader. If he really is Darth Vader, I wouldn't want you to mess with him. I have to go; here," she handed a comlink over. "Keep it on a closed frequency, and _please_ keep it on at all times; Force knows when there'll be another emergency."

"We'll do it," Leia took the comlink, put in Mon Mothma's frequency, and watched with the others as the senator ran off and called for an air taxi.

"Well..." Han started off. "Today was...fun."

Chewbacca grumbled under his breath and headed towards the stairs leading back to the Temple. Leia followed, and then Han and Luke finally headed that direction as well.

"I have a feeling that we're going to be here for a long stay." Luke muttered under his breath.

They all headed towards their separate rooms, Luke being last. Luke collapsed on his bed and thought about his father. Anakin Skywalker was in this very same building _right now_. It was amazing to think about, but Mon Mothma was right; if they did anything wrong, they could possibly change something in history or even worse; be wiped from existence entirely.

Sighing, Luke pulled the covers over himself and closed his eyes to drift off into a deep sleep...


	7. Gamblings and Meditations

Coruscant at night was always a beautiful sight to behold. The city's lights almost made it as bright as day in certain areas, and the vehicles whizzing by was always a nice thing to watch when one wanted to contemplate.

Contemplating was certainly what Leia wanted to do. Sitting on the windowsill, Leia looked outside, watching traffic go along its merry little way.

Although it was almost one in the morning, there was still plenty of people out, doing work or business. Leia recalled what it was like when she was in the Imperial Senate.

The nighttime landscape was pretty much the same, except the Jedi Temple was in ruins and few Imperial buildings were in existence, such as a center for the Navy, an Academy, and a training facility. Of course, one could never forget the tall Imperial Palace, spiking up from the rest of the city. The very memory of it made Leia feel ill.

To think that she was actually back in the past where the Republic was still in existence! Leia knew that Mon Mothma was right when she said that if they did anything, it would cause dire consequences, but she didn't care; Alderaan would _not_ blow up if she had any say in it. The Jedi would still be alive, and the Republic would still be in existance. There would be no 'Old Republic', just _the_ Republic.

Which brought her to her next thought; Darth Vader. She still couldn't believe that he wasn't some adult running around doing assassinations. Leia had always held him in contempt.

Darth Vader had murdered thousands, tortured even more, and he was there, watching, when Alderaan blew up. He held her back, made sure she did as she was supposed to; stand and watch in horor. He had been over her, watching her get interrogated. He had personally enjoyed watching the Imperial interrogation droid stick a needle in her neck.

He had also been the one who sealed Han Solo in carbonite, _and_ had been the one to try to kill his own son, after _knowing_ he was his son. He cut Luke's hand off for Force's sake!

So now, she finds out that that..._thing_...was an adorable little boy who seemed rather shy; the whole idea of it seemed completely unrealistic.

Leia sat and stared out the window until she eventually fell asleep right where she sat. The peaceful silence of night kept her calm and in a deep sleep.

The peacefullness vanished very quickly a few hours later.

"Rhylla!"

The shrill scream followed by it probably woke up half the galaxy. It certainly woke up Leia.

An explosion of noise was heard down the hallway as a door burst open and screams were heard. Following that, a bunch of other doors opened, and the sound of feet running all over the place was heard.

Leia ran over to the door and opened it, peeking her head out to see what in the blazes was going on.

A young Bothan girl was being chased around by a Human girl. They were about Leia's current age, and they were both screaming. Everyone else who peeked out seemed to be irritated, including a grumpy-looking eleven-year-old Rodian boy.

"What in the blazes are you doing, Kanah?" he shouted at the Bothan.

Kanah laughed. "I was just giving Rhylla over here a wake-up call!"

This only generated groans and irritated snarls from the rest of the Jedi on the floor, followed by a whole stampede of everybody joining in on Rhylla's chase to catch Kanah.

Once Kanah ran by Leia's door, Jedi filled the hallway behind her. Grumpy, Leia joined them; if anything, it would at least wake herself up.

Mostly everybody who was chasing her was barefoot and in their loose-fitting sleeping robes, including Leia, but nobody cared at the time; they were all too concerned on catching up with that blasted bothan.

Kanah ran up the stairs to the next level, a whole stampede following her. The group ran down the next hallway, all screaming or yelling curses at Kanah while she laughed the whole way. Doors opened everywhere to reveal teenage Jedi peeking out with irritated looks on their faces.

_Oh, no,_ Leia thought. _Jedi with hormones._

Obviously the hormones were affecting them all as well, for they joined the chase faster than the original group did.

Kanah had muscular legs, but she was no match for the strong strides of the teenagers. Her laughter turned into screaming as one particularly irritated Wookiee teenager made his way closer to her.

The last door in the hallway—which oddly hadn't opened yet—opened up to reveal a Mon Calamarian teenager peeking out. Rubbing his eyes lazily, he looked at the incoming group of Jedi running towards his door.

Kanah hopped into his arms and gave him a pleading look, causing him to roll his eyes. The Mon Calamarian sighed.

"Kanah, why am I always included in your scams?" he asked her with exasperation.

After asking her this question, he dropped her and shoved her irritably into his room, running out and locking the door to his room. The whole group slowed down and then stopped in front of him.

The Wookiee stopped, talking to him in Shyriiwook. "Are you going to keep her in there until breakfast?"

He shrugged in reply. "No; I'm on her side. You're just going to have to thrust me in there too."

Leia raised her eyebrows; what was this, a Jedi's version of gang warfare?

Suddenly, the Mon Calamarian took off, and it took a few seonds for everyone to register what just happened. They all got over it faster than Leia did and almost ran her over as they ran full-speed after him. Leia quickly got her legs moving and stayed tightly packed in the middle of the group.

The teenager led them all up the stairs on the other side of the hallway to the next level up. Leia almost tripped over herself to keep up with the rest of them; boy, these guys were good!

As the screaming and yelling started up again, doors on this floor opened up as well. Leia's brow furrowed; _What is he doing? He's going to get more people chasing him!_

Right on cue, the moment the thought finished formulating in Leia's mind, heads of adult Jedi popped out of their rooms. Most of these Jedi were young adults, and all of them were wide awake and alert at what was going on. Most of them laughed at the procession they saw.

Oddly enough, even though they laughed, they all joined the fray. The boy started getting closer and closer as the older Jedi caught up to them, and he reached another Jedi just in time. He gripped her forearms, and she giggled and pushed him inside her room, and walked out, just as he did to Kanah. Leia had no idea what was going on by now; what started off as an angry brigade of Jedi younglings has now turned into some sort of trade-off, safe-haven searching...thing.

They all stopped once more, and one of the adults, almost ceremoniouusly, walked up to the Human who just helped the Mon Calamarian.

"Dear Lanka, will that boy be staying in there until breakfast?" he asked her in a playful tone. Leia's eyes widened; was this a game?

The woman, Lanka, stood up straight and held her ground. "Why, I am on Nuuklar's side; you'll have to throw me in as well before this raucous stops."

"Ah, you jest!" the man laughed. "So be it, Lanka; you were given mercy and you rejected it. Now you shall face the consequences!"

Lanka twisted her right leg a little bit, doing it slowly while smiling, and then charged down the hallway, the adults immediately following her. The teenagers took a little longer to follow, and the younglings were left behind. By then, they were all laughing except for Leia.

Shaking her head in utter bewilderment, Leia merely followed what the rest of them were doing. Soft screams could be heard from about ten levels down, and Leia looked down the stairs to see another group running around. Even lower than that, Leia saw other groups, one including a ridiculously looking Han and Chewbacca running like maniacs, trying to catch a young ten-year-old Wookiee.

Completely lost as to what was going on, Leia proceeded to the turbolift to see if Luke had any clue. Leia punched in the button to call the lift, and the other younglings started gathering up behind her, talking loudly and laughing. Leia remained silent so she could hear what the blazes was going on.

"I didn't think Kanah would do it!" laughed a red-faced Rhylla. "Wow, that was so much fun!"

"Well, whoever wants to do it, does it," said another youngling. "You're right, though; I didn't think it would be Kanah; she's not much of a morning person."

The Rodian boy who had questioned Kanah before joined the conversation. "Wow, well that certainly woke me up. It's been at least two weeks since we last had that; I really think the Padawans enjoyed it."

"Well, they were a little grumpy at first," Rhylla observed. "Of course, I was the one who started it. I was just peacefully asleep in bed, and Kanah thought it would be funny to flip my bed over! I didn't care if it was a game or not; I wanted to throw my mattress at her!"

They all laughed, and the turbolift arrived. Leia sighed; so it _was_ a game. She certainly was going to need all the help she could get on understanding the Jedi; why anyone would enjoy being tossed out of bed at four in the morning was beyond her.

The lift doors opened and Leia walked in, followed by the younglings. The closest youngling punched the bottom floor, so Leia was going to have to meet Luke at the bottom.

………

Han Solo and Chewbacca yelled curses at the young Wookiee they were chasing. They had been sleeping peacefully when that youngling started a whole stampede in their hallway, and they were irritated over it.

The youngling led them up and down stairs to level after level. More people joined the chase as they passed through more levels until eventually even Chewbacca ran out of breath. The younglings they were with all slowed down and stopped in the middle of the fifth hallway they had passed through.

"What in the name of Corellia was that all about?" Han panted to Chewbacca. Chewie gave a shrug in response.

Wearily, they walked towards the end of the hallway and called a turbolift. It arrived a few minutes later, and the twosome, followed by Jedi younglings, walked inside. A young Twi'lek boy pressed for the ground floor, and they were off.

The skyline of Coruscant was still rather dark; apparently, the Jedi decided to wake up extra early this time. Purple lined the horizon, but there was still no other sign of the sun rising. Chewbacca yawned, but both he and Han were wide awake after that fiasco.

They finally reached the ground floor, and the lift doors opened. After exiting and walking out into the middle of the area, Han spotted Leia, who was currently searching for someone. Chewie and Han made their way through towards Leia, and by the time they caught up with her, Luke had wandered into their line of sight.

Han waved Luke over, and then finally got to Leia.

"Leia!" he shouted out. "Over here!"

Leia walked over to them. "Do you have any idea what that was about?"

Han raised his eyebrow. "What?"

Leia rolled her eyes. "That chasing game! I saw you two in it as well."

Luke caught up with them. "That was an interesting wake-up call."

Chewbacca looked over at him. _You were in that too?_

"What, I wasn't the only one?" Luke asked them.

"No," Leia shook her head. "Apparently, we all were in one."

"I didn't think the Wookiee would be able to run all the way to your levels," Han commented without thinking. He suddenly realized how stupid he sounded; no one could run from the 53rd level to the 126th level, and it was ridiculous to even mention that someone could run from the 126th level to the 781st level.

Han's embarrassment increased when Luke and Leia both raised their eyebrows at him. He blushed.

"Um, I mean…well, what I meant to say was…" Han stammered. "Uh…"

"There were different groups," Leia interrupted, talking to all of them.

Luke looked back at her. "There were?"

Leia nodded. "Yes. I saw all of them. All you really had to do was look down the stairs and listen out for the screams; it wasn't too hard. That's when I saw Han and Chewie chasing that Wookiee."

"We had every reason to chase him," Han replied defiantly, his embarrassment gone. "That kid woke us up at three thirty in the morning!"

"Well I woke up at four," Leia said casually. "How did the Wookiee wake you up?"

_He started a whole stampede on the level above us and came screaming down our hallway with a bunch of younglings chasing him,_ Chewbacca answered.

"Well, actually, I just went along with the younglings," Luke stated calmly. "It wasn't a youngling who started it for me; it as a—what was the term Mon Mothma used?—Padawan, I believe. A Padawan girl; she was probably about sixteen, although I'm only estimating on that…"

"Luke," Leia said to snap him back into focus.

"Oh, right," Luke went on hastily. "Well, she apparently started quite a mess, because by the time she got onto my level, she was being chased by Jedi Padawans, younglings, and I even saw some adults, which I believe were Jedi Knights."

"I saw some too, now that I think about it," Leia piped in. "Except the whole game was started on my level; some Bothan girl named Kanah got a youngling riled up and started a whole stampede. I have to admit, I joined them, until I couldn't chase them anymore…"

Han sighed. "Chewie and I chased that youngling up and down five levels, all of them housing younglings."

"You got the fortunate side then," Luke giggled. "The moment I joined the fray, the younglings had to run their legs off to catch up with the Padawan. _I_ couldn't even keep up!"

"Well, I ran about three levels," said Leia. "It was actually a little odd; it started with that Bothan youngling, and then she traded off with a Mon Calamarian Padawan named Nuuklar, and then _he_ traded off with a Human Jedi Knight. She took off, and the Padawans and Knights followed her; the younglings stopped running by then."

Luke looked amused. "The Jedi Knights joined in?"

"Do you know what the blazes it was?" Han inquired.

Luke shook his head. "No; but it was most likely just a game they do once in a while to wake people up."

"All of that screaming probably woke this half of the planet up," Leia grumbled.

After finally just deciding it was a game and shrugging it off, they all walked off towards the gardens again; at least they knew where _that_ was.

They all sat down and relaxed in the garden, watching younglings play and Padawans meditate. Han's thoughts drifted off to the day before.

The fact that they ran into Anakin Skywalker was already freaky enough without knowing that he was Darth Vader, not to mention that he was Luke and Leia's father.

What Mon Mothma said also had his thoughts. The fact that they could do _anything_, even just say 'hi' to someone and it could affect someone's future. What if they did something so drastic that they wiped themselves from existence? Han shuddered at the thought; he certainly didn't want _that_ to happen.

Well, maybe he could relax by playing some sort of game. He was supposed to be a nine-year-old anyway…

Luke sat up straight as he meditated under the shade of a tree in the garden. He could feel all of the Jedi through the Force, a feeling he had become extremely attached to. Luke adored sensing all of these Jedi around, and he couldn't get enough of it, but it also made him sad every time, because he knew that all of these Jedi died when the Empire came into being…

…Which brought him back to thoughts of his father. Luke knew that Leia wasn't coping with it very well; quite frankly, he couldn't really blame her. He just wished she could find a way to forgive. Not forget, just forgive. Luke already had. Although, he didn't know all of the horrible things that Darth Vader did…what if he really wasn't the man Luke always thought he was? No, he couldn't think like that…he'll become as bitter as Leia was whenever the subject was brought up.

Though his eyes were closed, Luke could almost _see _Han as he suddenly stood up, looking around. Opening his eyes, Luke looked behind him to the other side of the tree where the other three were sitting. Han was on his feet, using a hand to shield his eyes as he looked at some younglings.

Luke sent out the Force into his mind to see if he could catch anything coming off from Han emotionally. He sensed anxiety and restlessness. Luke sighed. Typical Han Solo; that smuggler always has to do _something_...

Han walked off, catching the others' attentions. Leia stood up and started to go after him, calling his name, while Chewbacca watched from the shade of the tree. Luke stayed where he was, letting Leia worry about Han. He wanted to meditate some more…

Han started toward some younglings who were playing tag, but then took a sudden sharp turn towards two Jedi Padawans who were playing sabacc.

After seeing where he was going, Leia rolled her eyes and gave an irritated sigh. Shaking her head and rolling her eyes once more, Leia turned back around and walked over to Chewie, sitting down beside him.

_So?_ The Wookiee pressed.

"He's going to play sabacc with some Jedi," Leia answered without thinking.

Chewie sat up immediately and got up, rushing after Han before Leia could say anything. Leia growled and leaned against the tree trunk. _"Men,"_ she muttered.

Besides the fact that Han and Chewie lost rights to their breakfast in a sabacc game, the day was pretty uneventful. Leia spent most of the day thinking about what happened yesterday, and Luke spent most of the day meditating while the other two gambled.

By the time dinner came, Han and Chewbacca had won four sabacc games and lost three. They had gained a few Republic credits (which Luke and Leia examined with high interest) and lost another meal ticket.

Without breakfast or lunch, Han and Chewie almost threw their faces into their dinner after filling up their plate so high with food that Luke and Leia would almost have to stand up from the other side of the table to see their faces.

Personally, Leia found their whole gambling ridiculous, but she didn't say anything. Right now she was wondering where Darth Vader was…

………

Senator Mon Mothma sighed as she sat down on her couch in her apartment. So, Palpatine was on the candidate list for being voted Chancellor…just wonderful…

Treesha walked in with a glass of water and some datapads.

"Some water, my lady," she said, handing over the water. She then handed over the datapads. "The current standings on votes and nominations for Chancellorship, my lady,"

"Thank you, Treesha," she said to her. Treesha smiled, and nodded.

"Would you like anything else, my lady?"

"No, thank you, Treesha,"

Her maid walked off to return to her duties. Mon Mothma looked at the datapads and heaved a heavy sigh. Yep. There was Palpatine, right there on the list. He was at the top of the current votes. There was Bail Antilles as well. If only _he_ made it; if only _any_ of them had made it; _anyone_ but Palpatine.

Shaking her head, Mon Mothma got off her couch and walked out to her balcony, watching the many lights and traffic lanes of Coruscant. Yes, tomorrow night, Queen Amidala would leave for Naboo once more, and then the Trade Federation would be defeated. Palpatine would become Chancellor, and everything would seem to go back to normal. Mon Mothma shook her head, sighing once more.

Everything would not be normal.

Praying to the Force, Mon Mothma prayed that _something_ different would happen that could have even the slightest possibility of changing the inevitable future.

She didn't know that her prayer was being heard...

Leia felt like she was going to be seriously ill. Han and Chewbacca were stuffing their faces to where their cheeks bulged about twice their size, and occasionally a bit of food would hang out of their mouths. Looking away once more as Han did a gigantic bite on some more food, she looked over to see Obi-Wan Kenobi walking in with his master, Qui-Gon Jinn. The two of them were deep in discussion. Taking any excuse to get away from the carnivores across the table, Leia slowly made her way towards them, Luke noticing and following her.

They got about two tables away from where Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon were sitting when the two of them noticed Anakin Skywalker following them to their seats and sitting solemnly, keeping a healthy distance from everyone.

Leia paused, but Luke went around her and continued on. After a while, she continued too, until they were both caught on the shoulders by Chewbacca. Han stood behind them with a piece of Nubian duck on a plate in his hand, giving them a stern look while trying to chew his food. The whole thing looked rather amusing and ridiculous at the same time, and Leia would have laughed had they not interrupted something important. Irritated, she and Luke walked back to their original spot and sat back down once again to finish their dinner; that was, if they still had an appetite.

After dinner, they all headed back to their rooms and headed off to bed, Leia's thoughts drifting onto what Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon might have been talking about, and why the _blazes_ Vader looked so…submissive? It was the strangest thing to see the man who led the entire Imperial Army and Navy looking like someone's…well, _slave_.

Shrugging it off, Leia snuggled into the blankets of her couch bed; after that morning's fiasco, she needed plenty of rest…

………

The next day was rather uneventful. Besides Han and Chewbacca getting lost and Luke and Leia having to spend two hours looking for them, nothing happened of interest. Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon, and Anakin had disappeared once again. Luke sighed at dinner, wishing that he could talk to his father again.

The day after was a bit boring as well, at least until after lunch. Han and Chewbacca found the Padawans who had beaten them before and challenged them to another game, and they accepted. They did dares as the penalties for losing a game, and Han and Chewie beat them twice.

"Ha!" Han shouted in triumph. "Twice in a row! You guys are such suckers! Oh, and don't forget your penalties!"

The Padawan boy smiled. "Jump into the river butt naked at night? Oh, yes, I'll do it; and what was the other one?"

"Jump on one of the tables during dinner and announce that you're a lunatic," Han replied with an evil grin.

The evil grin was reflected on the Padawan's face. "Oh, yes, but shouldn't we have another rematch? You'll be able to do more stuff to me."

The other Padawan, who had dropped out after the first game, giggled. Chewbacca watched her warily from the corner of his eye as Han considered the boy's proposition.

"Hm," he looked over at Chewie. "What do you think?"

Chewie grumbled. _I'm not skipping dinner, Han; I'm dropping out._

Chewbacca dropped his sabacc cards and backed away from the playing board. Han muttered 'coward' as he turned to look back at the Padawan, who was still smiling.

"No," Han replied finally. "I think I've done enough damage."

"Are you quite sure about that?" the Padawan's smile grew wider; and more mischievous.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Han said flatly.

"Well, I just thought," the Padawan said, raising his finger and moving it slightly as he spoke. "You would be more than happy to play a couple of more sabacc games with me."

Han stiffened. "I _would_ be more than happy to play a couple of more sabacc games with you."

Chewbacca put his face in his hands and groaned, and the other Padawan burst out laughing.

Two sabacc games later, Han had to steal Jedi Master Mace Windu's clothes while he was in the shower, and then had to run around wearing those clothes for an entire day. Even Chewbacca was giggling with the Padawans, and they were shedding tears of laughter. Han seemed completely bewildered on why he suddenly changed his mind about the rematch, causing the threesome to laugh even more.

So, at dinner, Luke and Leia sat beside Han and Chewbacca, completely unaware as to what was going to happen. The two Padawans were eating away merrily, but the boy seemed a tad bit nervous. The girl laughed at him and the two of them continued to talk.

Luke leaned over to Leia. "Leia, do you know what Han's smiling about?"

Leia shook her head. "No, but I do know that Han and Chewbacca were playing sabacc again."

"Again?" Luke rolled his eyes. "How delightful."

In the middle of dinner, Luke was thinking where his father might be when suddenly a Padawan jumped up onto a table and stood there, waiting for everyone to stare at him. Apparently, he was going for a dramatic effect. Luke and Leia stared, completely caught off guard, while Han and Chewie, on the other hand, had gone into a strange fit of giggles.

"I'm a lunatic, and I'm blasted proud of it!" the Padawan shouted with a laugh.

After that…very _truthful_ comment, the boy hopped down to his seat and started to eat once more. Some Padawans around him began to giggle, and then the giggle spread throughout the whole mess hall. Suddenly, everyone started bursting out into hysterical laughter, Luke and Leia joining them. The Padawan sat where he was, and then turned his head towards Han and Chewbacca, smiling. Chewie and Han only seemed to laugh more.

Eventually, everyone resumed to eating their dinners. Luke looked over at Han.

"What in the _blazes_ was that all about?" Luke asked him.

Han looked innocent. "Why are you asking me?"

"Because you had a knowing look that is almost never seen on your face," Leia replied for Luke. "We were so amazed that you actually knew a piece of information that half the planet didn't already know that we automatically assumed you were somehow apart of that…interesting performance?"

Han crossed his arms indignantly. Chewbacca mimicked him.

Luke merely chuckled and went back to his food while Leia rolled her eyes and sighed in irritation. Han giggled and leaned forward.

"Luke, you need to see something after dinner," he whispered. Leia looked over at him.

"And why not me?"

"Um," Han replied, obviously caught off guard. "Uh, because…you're a senator, and…and it's not a very senatorial thing…"

"Han, your lack of communicational skill never ceases to amaze me," Leia sighed. "Well, then, since it's not a 'very senatorial thing', and I probably don't even want to begin to imagine what it could be, I will see you all in the morning. I'm assuming that we're still meeting in the garden?"

"That would be correct, yes," Luke answered.

Leia promptly got up and walked off. The three boys watched her leave the mess hall before they turned back to face each other.

"All right," Luke said to Han. "What's this un-senatorial thing you were talking about?"

"Well," Han hesitated. "I don't want to ruin the surprise; just come with me and Chewie after dinner, okay?"

Luke perched his face on his palm. "Okay,"

After dinner, everyone began to disperse in their own general direction. Han and Chewbacca led Luke out of the mess hall and back outside to the garden. Luke gaped at the sight before him. The garden was _beautiful_ at night. Lights from Coruscant could be seen in the distance, and small lamps glowed like floating orbs. The reflection of the light on the water made the appearance of dancing light all around the garden, and the sound of fountains and the waterfall was extremely comforting. Luke looked around, entranced by the garden's beauty, until he found himself staring at a naked teenage boy. Luke screamed out and looked away.

"Oh Force, oh Force, oh Force," he repeated over and over again, looking directly away from the Padawan. Han and Chewbacca burst out laughing.

"See, Luke? This is the surprise!" Han laughed.

The naked Padawan shrugged at Luke, walked up to the top of the waterfall and saluted Han and Chewie.

"What did you _do_?" Luke whispered heatedly at Han.

"Sabacc," Han said simply, and Luke caught on to everything from there.

After he saluted, the Padawan faced the waterfall, jumped, and did a cannonball. Right as he hit the water, a gigantic splash erupted out and soaked Han, Chewbacca, and Luke. A few seconds later, the boy's head popped out of the water, and he wore a smug grin.

Dripping wet, Han and Chewbacca threw glares at the Padawan, and Luke just blinked. The Padawan laughed at Luke.

"They dragged you into it, didn't they?" he asked him. Luke merely nodded in reply.

The Padawan climbed out of the water (causing Luke to start muttering 'Oh Force' over and over again once more) and dried himself off, putting his clothes on. While he was walking by Chewbacca and Han, he Force pushed them into the water and grabbed Luke's arm.

"So," he started off as Han and Chewbacca fell screaming into the freezing river. "What's your name?"

"Luke," Luke answered timidly.

"Well, it's a great pleasure to meet you, Luke," the Padawan said politely. "My name's Yuron; Yuron Bloare."

"Nice to meet you," Luke looked over at the smiling Padawan. "Um, well, my full name is, uh, Luke…Antilles. Luke Antilles."

"That's a nice name!" Yuron's friendly smile grew wider. "Oh, and sorry about dinner; you probably think what I said was one hundred percent true."

"Um, yeah," Luke didn't exactly know how to reply to that.

"Oh, don't worry; it was all a dare. I lost to your friends over there and they told me to do it. And what I just did before was their idea as well, so I thought I'd repay the favor." Yuron said, motioning back towards the garden. "Oh, here,"

Yuron handed Luke his towel. Luke took it and started to dry himself off.

"Who are your friends, anyway?" Yuron asked him.

"Han Solo and Chewbacca," Luke said without thinking.

Yuron giggled. "Those two sure are funny; especially Han. He falls for mind tricks so easily! Just wait until you see what he's got to do tomorrow."

"It doesn't have anything to do with him being nude, does it?" Luke asked frantically.

Yuron laughed. "No; at least not him."

"What do you mean by that?" Luke gave him a suspicious look.

"Well," Yuron started off. "Maybe you should just wait until tomorrow. Good night, Luke."

At that, Yuron skipped happily up the stairs to a lift. Luke frowned and watched him disappear, and then turned to wait for Han and Chewbacca.

Whatever they did, it would certainly be interesting to see tomorrow.


	8. Reuniting and Renegade Pallies

Leia yawned and stretched as she slowly made her way down the stairs towards a lift. Jedi all around her were waking up and heading towards the main floor. Leia's stomach grumbled. _How do these people survive until breakfast?_ Leia thought irritably.

Once she got to the bottom, the nine-year-old Leia headed out towards the garden, when she suddenly smelled something delicious. Leia looked over and saw two Padawans talking to each other, each holding pastries. Leia raised an eyebrow in surprise, and retraced their steps, which led her to the mess hall.

Pastries and snacks of all sort laid across the center table, with sleepy-looking Jedi walking around grabbing some and putting it on a cloth before walking out of the room. Leia saw some cloths at the edge of the table and helped herself to some snacks. Munching away on a fruit tart, Leia happily walked towards the garden with a new bounce in her step...at least until she saw Han running around in ill-fitting Jedi clothes, a lightsaber dangling from the belt. Luke and Chewbacca scurried behind him, both looking terrified and bickering with Han. Leia watched the odd parade as the threesome ran off towards the garden, Han's humongous robes billowing behind him.

Five seconds later, a strangled yell of irritation was heard. Leia winced, praying that what she just saw the other three doing wasn't related to the yell. A dark skinned Human could be seen peeking out of a doorway, bare feet under a brown robe that was tightly wrapped around himself. Oddly enough, the man seemed...well, _wet_. Was he sweaty? Maybe he fell into the river...no, that couldn't be it; the garden was in the opposite direction of the man. Unless...

Leia's eyes bulged. Oh, Han was going to get murdered. If the Jedi didn't do it, she would...

The Senate roared in celebration. A Chancellor had been chosen. Senator Palpatine, or now, _Chancellor_ Palpatine stood proudly in the middle of the Senate room, smiling.

Mon Mothma looked away in disgust. Palpatine standing in the Chancellor's podium had become such a customary sight that she needn't bother looking.

Palpatine was giving a speech about being the best Chancellor he could be and he would always serve them diligently and so forth...in other words, the same old speech every new Chancellor gives, whether it's true or not. It certainly wasn't true for Palpatine. That old can of corrosion was just waiting to strike.

Mon Mothma sighed sadly. She couldn't wait until this was over with; she hated this feeling. She felt so..._helpless_...

"You full-feathered nerfherder! Why did you take his clothes while he was showering?!"

"It was a penalty, Leia!"

"It was a stupid penalty, and if you didn't play sabacc in the first place, this would have never happened!"

"Look, Your Worshipfulness, I never back down from a penalty _or_ a sabacc game!"

"_That's_ obvious,"

Luke and Chewbacca couldn't decide whether to laugh or to slowly creep away. The situation was certainly serious, considering they all just found out from another Jedi that the clothes Han stole belonged to a Jedi Master on the High Council, but it was also hysterical watching Leia and Han argue.

"Um, shouldn't we worry about _returning_ the clothes before we're discovered with them?" Luke inserted carefully.

"Brilliant idea, Luke," Leia growled. Luke seemed to deflate.

Han looked between Luke and Leia and then sighed. "Well, I'll see if I can sneak off to change and hide the clothes somewhere, but I'm gonna need a diversion."

Leia glared daggers at Han. "If you're suggesting me—"

"Stars, no," Han said quickly. "Just someone."

Luke and Chewbacca looked at each other, and then back at Han. They both raised their hands.

"We'll volunteer." Luke spoke out. Leia let out a grumble and walked off towards the refreshing shade of a tree to relax and calm down. Luke and Chewbacca were deciding how to distract a Jedi Master without getting themselves _or_ Han discovered.

Eventually, Luke and Chewbacca began to keep a lookout for the Jedi Master while Han snuck out to a 'fresher. Unfortunately, the Master came in sight (fully clothed in another tunic and robe) before Han was finished changing, so Luke had to jump out and accidentally bump into the Master, getting himself bowled over. The Jedi stumbled and quickly reached a hand down to help Luke up.

"Are you all right?" the man asked, although it wasn't as considerate sounding as when Ben had asked almost a week earlier. Luke took his time to get up, and then stumbled back down again. The Master helped him up again, and Luke took his time to rub his eyes and look up, a little embarrassed.

"Um, yeah, sorry, sir," Luke said before realizing that the correct term was 'Master', not 'sir'. Praying that the Master wouldn't think anything of it, Luke waited for the Jedi to reply.

The Jedi simply gave a curt nod of the head before continuing off. Han had just walked out of the refresher, looking very relieved. A bulge was in the side of his tunic, but the Master paid no attention to it as he strode by. Just as the coast seemed clear, the Master froze in mid-step, turning sharply back at Han. Han didn't notice, but Luke's eyes signaled him to get out of sight and get rid of the clothes as soon as possible. The Jedi began to walk swiftly towards Han, and Luke started to panic, suddenly realizing that Han was pretty much carrying a tracking device; the Jedi Master's lightsaber. If there was one thing that Luke had noticed in his time here, and in his own training, it was that a Jedi's lightsaber was extremely important, and it was almost an extension of the arm. A Jedi could always sense where their lightsaber was, and if Han was still carrying it around, he was pretty much screaming out 'I'm carrying your stuff'.

A thought struck Luke, and he quickly rushed over to Han.

"Han!" he shouted. Han turned around just as the Jedi Master caught up with them. Han's face was casual, but Luke could sense the panic coming off of him. Luke's glare caused the panic to calm down, because Han knew by now that Jedi could sense emotions.

"Um, y-yes?" Han asked uncertainly as the towering Jedi stood behind Luke, waiting to see what happened.

"Han, I think, those clothes you found belong to this Master," Luke said, motioning the Jedi behind him. Han looked at the man, and pulled out the clothes and lightsaber.

"Is all of this yours, Master?" he asked timidly.

"Yes," the Jedi almost growled. Han quickly handed the clothes over and rushed off.

"Sorry about that, Master; Han found them in a 'fresher that didn't have any showers, so he was going to, um, to take the clothes to the laundry." Luke prayed that he didn't sound like an idiot. The Master merely cocked an eyebrow and walked off. Luke took a deep calming breath. Off in the distance, Luke recognized Yuron laughing his head off. Yuron walked over.

"Nice save," he giggled. "I thought _I_ was going to have to intervene."

"Yeah," Luke smiled. "Um, I'd better go find Han. Bye."

"See ya later!" Yuron waved as he turned around and began to walk off. "Have fun in classes today!"

Luke froze, terror filling him. _Classes!!_ _Oh, blast it all, we're supposed to be doing classes?!_ Luke knew he was in for it now. If these were Jedi classes, Han and Chewbacca would never survive; how in the Emperor's black heart was he going to get them out of this one?

After finding Han, the foursome spent the rest of the day talking about things, mostly what they were going to do about classes; it was only a matter of time before someone noticed they weren't doing what typical Jedi their age should be doing, and then all of the Empire would break loose...

At the end of the day, they were all exhausted from stress. Luke trudged back up to his room, closed the door, and collapsed on his bed without even removing his boots. Oh, this was a nightmare...Luke wished _something_ would help cheer up the mood..._anything_...

………

Senator Mon Mothma kept a straight face as she found out the news, as all senators know to hide their emotions well. She also knew the news was coming.

Still, it was a shock nonetheless, and a sadness. The Trade Federation had been beaten off, and a Jedi Master by the name of Qui-Gon Jinn had been killed. His apprentice, the young Obi-Wan Kenobi, would now become a Knight and train Anakin Skywalker. These two Jedi were going to become very important to the Republic during the Clone Wars...but they wouldn't survive the Empire...

Tears welled up in Mon Mothma's eyes as she sat on her couch and contemplated everything. Memories flooded her mind as she sat in silence. Treesha was currently somewhere in the market buying foods for the kitchen, so Mon Mothma was completely alone. She preferred it this way. She wanted to talk to Leia and the others, but she couldn't be seen in the Temple. She certainly couldn't invite them to her apartment, and a senator out in public always has HoloNet following her. Mon Mothma sighed; being a senator was sometimes more taxing than rewarding.

Mon Mothma didn't care anymore if she was wiped from existence; she was _not_ going to let the same thing happen. Not if she was around to stop it. Closing her eyes, she promised herself that she would do anything she could to subtly alter history for the better. Treesha reentered the apartment, and Mon Mothma opened her eyes, her promise sealed.

………

"HARVEY!!"

Luke groaned. Not another wake-up call game.

A stomping noise was heard going by his door. A timid little squeak came from the room next to his as a door opened.

"Harvey, where is my datapad?"

"I don't know…"

"What do you mean 'you don't know'?! You're the one who borrowed it last!"

"Fííone, I have no clue what happened to it! Cross my heart and hope to be killed by a Sith Lord!"

The young voices, about Luke's age, continued to argue over the missing datapad until Luke got out of bed and walked out of his room. A young black skinned Human girl stood in the doorway beside him, and a black haired Human boy with inquisitive green eyes sat on his bed.

"What's going on?" Luke asked, too irritated to hold himself back.

"He took my datapad and then he hid it!" the girl shouted angrily.

"I_borrowed_ it, and then Reagon asked for it, okay?" the boy replied.

"Reagon?" Fííone looked puzzled. "_He_ asked for it?"

"Yes, why?"

"Reagon said he had two datapads just yesterday!"

Luke sighed. "Can we just settle this so we can all go back to sleep?"

Harvey raised an eyebrow. "Go back to sleep? It's already 0435 hours. We should be heading down to snack."

This got Luke's attention. "Snack?"

Fííone giggled. "You're hungry?"

"I'm starving!" Luke replied. "Let's get going!"

Harvey stood up and looked over at Fííone. "Do you mind?"

"Hm?" she replied before realizing. "Oh!"

The youngling closed the door quickly and leaned against it. She was already dressed and ready to go. Luke looked down at his attire. Perhaps he should change as well, but he didn't know where to get clothes. He had been wearing the same tunic for about a week now, but he had been washing it every night when he showered.

Luke walked back into his room and put his boots and belt on. Staring at the empty clip where a lightsaber should be, Luke began to miss his weapon. It didn't seem to be a problem to not have it as a nine-year-old, considering no one noticed and every other nine-year-old he saw didn't have one as well, but Luke still wanted to wield his blade once more.

A knock came at the door. "Hey, are you ready to go?"

It was Harvey; obviously, he and his friend thought Luke wanted to go with them.

"Um, yeah, I'm ready." Luke quickly made his hair look respectable and opened his door. "Lead the way."

"Sure thing…what's your name, anyway?" Harvey smiled politely.

"Luke," Luke replied. "Luke Antilles."

"I'm Fííone Corr," Fííone introduced. "And this is Harvey Yalleh."

"A pleasure," Luke followed them as they led the way towards a turbolift. Everyone else started departing their rooms, most of them being Knights. Harvey looked at all of them, and stood up straighter, looking straight ahead. Fííone mimicked him.

Luke was confused. "Um, what are you doing?"

"They're Knights, Luke," Harvey whispered from the side of his mouth. "And we're younglings; you do the math."

"Uh, we need to show respect?" Luke hazarded a guess, which was a big mistake. Harvey and Fííone stopped dead in their tracks and looked at him.

"What galaxy do you live in?!" Harvey asked incredulously. "Are you just not thinking? Knights and Masters select younglings to be their Padawan learners! We've got to show them that we're worthy or we'll be kicked out of the Order!"

Luke absorbed this new information quickly, putting it together with what Mon Mothma had explained so many days ago. "Right; sorry, I guess I went brain-dead for a moment."

"Obviously," Harvey turned around and started once again to walk towards the turbolift.

Once they got to the bottom, Luke saw Leia walking with other Jedi towards the mess hall…ah, so they _did_ eat when they first got up in the morning.

After having some delicious pastries, Luke managed to find his way towards Leia.

"Good morning," she said sleepily.

"Hi, Leia," Luke replied affectionately. "Well, I just made two more acquaintances."

"You seem to attract the whole Jedi Order," Leia mumbled through her food.

Luke shrugged. "Maybe I'm that likeable."

"Don't inflate your head, Skywalker," Leia said playfully. "We won't be able to breathe in this room if you do."

Luke laughed. "Well, I just found out what happens if a youngling isn't selected by a Knight or Master; they get kicked out of the Order."

Leia choked on her food. "They kick them out?!"

"Yeah, I know," Luke munched on a fruit tart. "It does seem a little harsh."

"Just a little," Leia sarcastically responded. "Come on; let's find Han and Chewbacca before they do some other blasted penalty."

Luke was about to respond when he sensed Anakin. He froze.

Leia noticed. "Luke, are you all right?"

"He's back," Luke couldn't hide the excitement in his voice. "He's back!"

Leia showed an expression of confusion and exasperation. "What are you talking about?"

"It's Father!" Luke whispered excitedly. "He's back on Coruscant, and Ben's with him!"

"Oh," Leia replied. "Um, that's good."

"Come on, Leia," Luke looked at her seriously. "You've _got_ to get rid of this hatred for him; it'll do nothing but hurt yourself!"

"Luke, you know what he did," Leia growled.

"Yes, I do," Luke answered simply. "But that was _Darth Vader_. This is _Anakin Skywalker_, our father. Why can't you tell the difference?"

"They're the same person, Luke, unless Vader's suffering from the mental instability of multiple personalities." Leia gave Luke an irritated look.

Luke sighed. "You're just going to have to make peace with him eventually, or your hatred for him will turn you _into_ Darth Vader."

This comment frightened Leia, but she seemed to push it off. "Let's just find Han and Chewie."

Luke followed her subconsciously as he tried to sense where Anakin was. Outside. In front of the Temple. Anticipation bubbled inside Luke; he was _dying_ to see him again, even if he couldn't talk to him.

Han and Chewbacca came into view in the main entrance hall. Luke noticed they were staring outside. Where they looking at Anakin? Luke grabbed Leia's arm and dragged her over to the front stairs, Han and Chewbacca just realizing they were there. The two of them ran up beside the twins.

"Do you see him, Luke?" Han pointed subtly towards a young nine-year-old boy with sandy-blonde hair and Luke's crystalline eyes. He now had his hair in a different style; instead of hanging on his head, it was pulled back in the same style as Obi-Wan's when they first saw him. His hair was tied back and a very short braid made its way down to the tip of his shoulder. Obi-Wan's hair was now down, the braid gone.

Anakin watched Jedi go in and out of the Temple, now dressed just like other Jedi. He waited patiently while Obi-Wan talked to another Jedi, but he seemed a little distressed, or upset; Luke couldn't exactly tell which.

Obi-Wan Kenobi finished talking to the Jedi and he and Anakin Skywalker began to walk up the stairs of the Jedi Temple. Luke excitedly waited for them to reach the top, but Leia now dragged him away towards one of the pillars. Han kept staring until Chewie did the same to him. The foursome hide behind a pillar as Obi-Wan and Anakin made it to the top of the stairs, Obi-Wan walking crisply so poor Anakin nearly tripped over his long robe to keep up.

Luke broke away from Leia's firm grip to run up to Obi-Wan.

"Hello, Master," he said happily.

Obi-Wan smiled, but something seemed different in his eyes. "Good morning, young one."

Luke looked over at Anakin, who was watching him warily. "Hi there; your name's Anakin, right?"

"Yeah," he muttered. Before the young one knew it, he continued, "But you didn't like that name."

Luke remembered when they first found out, and then their reaction. His cheeks flushed. "Oh, yeah…well, we just never heard that name before, so, uh…I thought it was a nice name."

Anakin kept silent, but Obi-Wan giggled. "Padawan, perhaps you could spend the morning with him; I'm sure this youngling would be more than happy to show you around the Temple."

Luke smiled on the outside, but on the inside, alarm bells went off. He had no idea where _anything_ was in the Temple, except for the mess hall and the garden! Oh, he was in trouble now…wait; there was one saving grace!

"Oh, I'm really, really sorry, Master, but I need to get to classes," Luke responded carefully.

Obi-Wan nodded. "Ah, yes, of course. Come, Padawan."

Obi-Wan took off swiftly once more, but before Anakin could catch up, he was gone. Panic showed in Anakin's face.

Luke felt so sorry for him that he had to say something. "Um, did he say where he was going?"

Anakin seemed hesitant to respond. "Um, he said we needed to report to the Council directly."

Helplessness flooded Luke; he had no idea where the Council was; he had only found out there was a High Council about a day or two ago. "Well, uh, I'm sure you'll be able to find him then. Do you know where the Council is?"

"I think…" Anakin said uncertainly. He seemed to want to say something else, but instead just took off. Luke was about to shout for him to stop and wait, but Leia kicked him in the back of his leg.

"What in the name of the Emperor's black heart are you thinking?!" she whispered heatedly. "Are you trying to do something that'll get us wiped out from existence?!"

"I doubt saying hi would do anything," Luke said defiantly.

"Are you out of your mind?!" Han caught up with them. "What if you just changed something?"

"How?" Luke asked angrily.

"Well, what if he was supposed to follow him all the way to wherever they were going and something important happened?!" Han rambled. "Now he lost him! What if he tries to find him, and gets lost in the garden just as an automobile accident occurs, carrying a giant load of pallies, and one big pallie lands on his head, knocks him out, and he falls into the river an drowns?!"

Luke's anger quickly turned into hysterical laughter. "So, Darth Vader dies by a renegade pallie?"

Leia joined in Luke's laughter. "Yeah, HoloNet'll be all over that."

Chewbacca walked over, and reminded them that they needed to go to the garden to find out about their classes and what they should do about it. Luke reluctantly agreed and followed everyone else to the garden. When they reached there, Leia, who was leading the group, froze. Luke and the others peeked around her and looked for the source of her disturbance. Luke gasped.

Anakin was there.


	9. The 'New Kid'

**Okay, for those of you who are reading this, I revamped the chapters so that everything was in nice long chapters instead of the short pathetic things they were; the only problem now is that you guys can't review the same chapters that you reviews before until I get to chapter 34, and that's a LONG way from here, so PLEASE if you want to review the chapter just like normal, just send me a PM with your review for the chapter. PLEASE still review; I really love them and they're helpful! Ani and Obi love them too! Don't put poor Ani and Obi into a depression! Please review!**

* * *

Anakin Skywalker innocently stood in the gardens currently staring at a fountain. He was searching for Obi-Wan (whoops; Master Kenobi…why did they have to call them that?) until he had accidentally stumbled in here. There was so much water, and they were using it for _decoration!_ That was a _lot _of water! Anakin had never seen so much water in his life since this past week; first Naboo and its swamps, waterfalls, and rivers, and now the Jedi have…well, Anakin didn't really know what they were. He didn't even know what a waterfall was until Naboo. This place was _amazing_. _I wish Mom could see this,_ Anakin thought sadly. He missed his mother desperately. She was probably wasting away in the twin suns of Tatooine by now without her son…Anakin's eyes stung, but he wouldn't let the tears out; a slave _never_ showed their emotions…wait, he wasn't a slave anymore. 

Anakin shook his head; everything was going so fast. First he was freed, then taken to be trained a Jedi, rejected by the Order, fought in space combat, and then suddenly he's going to be trained by the apprentice of the man who found him since he died at the hands of some Sith monster.

Temptation flooded Anakin as he slowly made his way towards the fountain. _Look at all of that water…_he thought. Anakin just _had_ to do it…

Anakin dipped his hands into the water and brought them up to his mouth. Anakin smiled as the cool water went down his throat; this tasted good! Anakin dipped his hands in again, but the same dependable feeling that he was being watched overcame him and he quickly stepped away from the fountain. Anakin looked over towards the doorway to the indoors and saw those same kids who ran into him before. Anakin took a step back; he didn't trust them. There was something wrong with them. Maybe he just wasn't used to Jedi or something…they weren't too nice to him at first anyway. Anakin turned away from them and tried to find someone to ask them where the Jedi Council was. Maybe if he was lucky, Obi-Wan…_Master Kenobi_…will find him and get him out of those kids' sights. A young Human boy with black hair and green eyes was currently talking to a dark-skinned Human girl. Anakin sighed; he might as well try them.

Hesitating, Anakin remembered that they might not react in the best sense; Anakin knew what it was like when a new kid came in; everyone treated them differently. Anakin had seen it before in the slave quarters; it was just the way beings were. Different things scared them, even if they're all in the same situation. Anakin felt completely hopeless. He was a nine-year-old Force-sensitive boy who had absolutely no Jedi training surrounded by kids his age who were a million times better than him. What was he thinking, anyway? How could he, Anakin Skywalker, a boy who had been nothing but a slave until now, add up to being a Jedi? Shaking his head, once more, Anakin angrily shook those thoughts out of his head; he _never_ thought like that. Anakin could strive to whatever he wanted to if he put his mind to it. He wasn't just a nine-year-old who could do nothing but dream and clean a junkshop for a Toydarian anymore; he was Anakin Skywalker, a Jedi Padawan, and he _would_ show Master Kenobi that he could be just as good as any other nine-year-old here; in fact, he would be even _better_.

Swallowing his trepidation, Anakin walked over to the two younglings. The two looked up at him with smiles. _They must not know I'm new here yet,_ Anakin thought bitterly. _Otherwise they'd act differently; oh, just wait until you ask your question…_

"Hey," the boy said.

The girl pointed at Anakin's hairstyle. "Wow, is that a Padawan braid? You got chosen to be a Padawan already? How old are you? You look our age!"

"Um," Anakin replied timidly. "I'm nine."

"WOW!" they both shouted before he could continue.

"Yeah, um, but—"

"That is _so_ wizard!" the boy laughed. "How did you do it? Who's your Master?"

Nine years of slavery almost burst out of him as the question 'Who's your Master' rang in his head. _They're talking about your teacher, Anakin,_ he explained quickly in his head. _Not an actual master…not Watto…_

"O-Obi-Wan Kenobi," Anakin finally managed to get out.

"Obi-Wan Kenobi?!" the boy exclaimed. "He's a Knight?! He was just a Padawan on the mission he left for! Blast, what happened?"

"Master Qui-Gon's dead." Anakin choked. Emotions fought to get out, but Anakin wrestled with them ferociously.

The two younglings exchanged looks of shock and then looked back at Anakin. "He's…he's dead?"

Anakin nodded, not able to speak.

"Oh," the girl breathed. "That's…horrible…poor Master Kenobi…so…um, he's your Master now?"

"Yes," Anakin replied, his emotions bottled down. "Um, where's the Jedi Council again?"

The boy laughed. "Hey, you cheered me up! That was a good joke!"

Embarrassment filled Anakin as he desperately tried to ask again without sounding as stupid. "Yeah…"

The girl seemed to catch on. "You really don't know? Who _are_ you?"

Anakin took a deep breath. "My name's Anakin Skywalker."

The boy gasped. "Hey, wait, I've heard about you! You're the new kid!" He turned the conversation towards the girl. "Did you know that they say he's the Chosen One?"

"Really?" the girl replied, looking at Anakin. "You're the prophesized Chosen One?"

"Um…" Anakin's voice faded. He wanted to just freeze this whole scene and get out of here. Suddenly, his saving grace came.

"Anakin! There you are!"

Obi-Wan ran over to Anakin, Anakin so grateful that his Master found him that he couldn't hide a smile of relief.

"Come, Padawan," Obi-Wan told him calmly, a hint of a smile twitching on the edge of his lips.

Anakin quickly obeyed, taking any excuse to get away from the younglings currently gaping at him. Obi-Wan led them out of the gardens back into the Temple, passing by those other kids once more. The girl watched Anakin very sternly, so Anakin avoided her eyes; what was her problem? He hadn't even done anything!

"Anakin, try to be more careful," Obi-Wan scolded lightly as they continued to walk. Anakin's shoulders slumped in shame. He hung his head down and followed Obi-Wan submissively. A question that had been bugging him ever since he found out Obi-Wan was going to train him started to poke and prod once more.

"Master?" he asked before he could stop himself.

"Hm?" Obi-Wan didn't even look back.

"Uh, nothing…" Anakin quickly compensated. He wanted to ask the question, but he didn't know if he was allowed to.

"What is it Anakin?" Obi-Wan pressed, his head turning slightly to regard Anakin for a moment.

"Um, are you going to beat me if I do something wrong?" Anakin burst out. The moment he asked the question, he wanted to kick himself; he believed he was going to find out the answer real soon, considering Obi-Wan stopped dead in his tracks. Anakin braced himself…

"Anakin, I would _never_ do that," Obi-Wan said seriously. He kneeled down to Anakin's height and used his hand to push Anakin's chin up to face him, since his head automatically jumped down, his eyes shut tight. "Never. Don't you ever worry about that or think that."

An overwhelming amount of shock and relief flooded Anakin. Obi-Wan's intense eyes held his until Anakin had to look away. Now he felt bad even asking it to someone as kind and good as Obi-Wan…

………

Han was currently laughing as Luke angrily tried to make an explanation.

"Come _on_, Han, he was obviously from Tatooine, so of course he couldn't help it!"

"He looked like a full-feathered nutcase!" Han laughed. "The kid just drank water out of a fountain!"

Luke's irritated retaliation was lost in the roar of laughter from Han. Leia and Chewie rolled their eyes in unison. He certainly _did_ look a little stupid doing that. A chuckle escaped Leia.

Anakin Skywalker…Darth Vader…the two names clashed in Leia's mind as the image of Anakin dunking his head into a fountain left her mind. Luke's earlier statement had certainly shaken her up, but she just didn't know what to do. On one end, there was a horrible monster, a murderer. On the other end, there was an innocent nine-year-old boy who had no idea what a fountain was and so he dunked himself into it. Could she give him a chance? The thought seemed ridiculous, but when Leia looked at it logically, she was accusing a nine-year-old boy for stuff he hadn't even done yet…but he _was_ going to do it! Conflictions of all sorts went on in Leia's head, full out war between her hatred for him and Luke's compassion and logic.

Leia leaned against the wall as Han's laughter continued to make a raucous and Luke's irritated replies still went on unceasing. This trip was turning out to be real headache…and they still hadn't even found out how they got there! A horrible thought flooded her mind; they hadn't even found out how they had gotten there…or how they would leave.

………

Senator Mon Mothma relaxed on her couch as she thought of what she could possibly do in the Senate to subtly nudge the Republic towards survival. Could she tell someone? Bail Organa? Padmé Amidala? No, they'd all think she was insane…

Mon Mothma put her face in her hands; she _was_ insane…how could she change the history of the entire Republic by herself? She couldn't get the others into it, could she? She had just given them a lecture about repercussions of doing anything, and now she's suggesting them to completely throw away what she had said just two or three nights ago and changing the fate of the galaxy. _Sounds like some sort of new game that children would play so they couldn't do homework._ Mon Mothma groaned. What was she thinking? If she kept this up, she was going to be spending half of her time pretending to be herself once more in the past, and the other half changing her mind with the wind about saving the galaxy. She needed _someone_, _anyone_…perhaps a Jedi? Would they think she was insane as well? Or would they sense the truth in her words? If they did…that was a very big 'if' though. 'If' was a dangerous word to tamper with; of course, doing nothing would be just as bad.

_What have I gotten myself into?_ She asked herself desperately. She felt a million times better when she was fighting in the Rebel Alliance…she was directly under the nose of the Emperor in the Senate, and she still felt better than now…

She heard Treesha enter the apartment once more after a shopping trip and quickly composed herself. Looking at her datapad, Mon Mothma noticed that there was another session in the Senate to be attended. This was going to be a long day…

………

Han giggled furiously as they headed towards lunch. Luke seemed to be sizzling as they waited in line, but Leia calmed him down by starting a conversation that didn't have to do with Tatooine-living or head-dunking.

"I…I thought a lot about what you said earlier, Luke," Leia started off uncertainly.

Luke looked at her curiously. Leia took a deep breath and continued. "You know, about Vader? I've been thinking about it and…well, um, you're probably right about my hatred. I thought about it logically and I suppose…it would consume me in the end."

Leia paused, and then burst out. "But what do I do? How can I forgive him?"

"How can you forgive someone who hasn't even done what you're accusing them of doing?" Luke replied simply.

Leia nodded, taking in his answer. "I guess you're right; but what do I _do_?"

Luke put a hand on her shoulder. "You have to learn to look at him as Anakin Skywalker, our father. Then you can go from there."

Chewbacca pointed out an area where they could sit that was the only spot abandoned. Well, not abandoned completely.

"Oh, no…" Leia moaned.

Just as in the garden, Anakin was right where they wanted to go.

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**This chapter is shorter than the others, but that's because I needed to update so I could give you guys the new info about the story; also, since I'm trying to make the chapters a ton longer, updating may take longer (if that's possible...), but I'll do my best to update as soon as I can. Again, please review!**


	10. Puberty

**Oh wow, it's probably been almost a year since I updated this story... I am so sorry!!!!!!!! I got into a massive writer's block and had no clue how or what to write for this story! But now I've got a feel for the plot and I can write it down fairly quickly! I've even started on the next chapter already!! :-D Anyway, once again I am very sorry for the long wait! In fact, this probably would not have been updated so soon if it weren't for Jedi Master Misty Sman-Esay (except I told him/her that I would update it within July... SORRY!! -_-' )! Jedi Master Misty Sman-Esay PMed me about my "quote of the month from my stories" and got the quote correct. I asked what story he/she wanted updated and he/she said The Skywalker Legacy within two months, so HERE IT IS!!!!!!**

* * *

There they were _again_.

Anakin sighed. Those kids were heading his way… what had he done to deserve this?

They all sat down around him. The girl remained quiet, purposely avoiding eye contact. The blonde Human boy was smiling, but refrained from speaking. The Wookiee didn't seem to be having as much trouble, but it seemed that his main prerogative was just to eat, not talk. The only other one in the group was looking at Anakin as if he had just grown another head. What a crowd.

Anakin did his best to just ignore them until the food arrived. It would've worked if the blonde didn't start talking.

"So, um, Anakin…" he started off, obviously not knowing where to go with his conversation.

Anakin looked at him with a straight face to see what he would do. When he got no reaction, Anakin restrained a sigh. "Yes?"

"Um," the blonde suddenly realized something. "Oh, we never introduced ourselves, did we?"

The boy got a dirty look from everyone at the table except for Anakin. What was with these people, anyway?

"No, I don't think you did," Anakin replied.

"My name's Luke," Luke introduced himself. "This is my twin sister, Leia, and my friends, Han and Chewbacca."

Anakin gave a friendly smile and nodded in recognition, but didn't say anything. If looks could kill, Leia would have mauled her brother.

Thankfully, the food arrived and everyone went silent, filling themselves to their content. Anakin finished quickly, not being used to eating much anyway. He got up and left, saying a friendly and polite good-bye before exiting.

Those kids were just plain weird. Not to mention a little creepy.

………

"What in the blazes were you _thinking_?" Leia hissed. "Don't you remember what Mon said?"

Luke blew out a sigh. "Sorry, Leia, I was just trying to be friendly and _polite_ unlike the rest of you."

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?" Han sounded offended. "I was _very_ polite; I didn't stuff my mouth, I didn't talk with my mouth full—"

"You didn't talk at all," Luke interrupted. "And Leia, you just glared at him."

"Luke, I'm adjusting as quickly as I can," Leia snapped. "You can't expect me to be friendly to him the moment I see him just because I'm _considering_ giving him a chance. Besides, Mon said—"

Luke suddenly stood up. "I don't _care_ what Mon said. We're here for a _reason_. Isn't that what you guys believe? That things happen for a reason? I know I believe it. So we must be here in the past for a reason… and the only reason that I can see is to save the Republic, inadvertently meaning saving our father. If you don't actually care about the safety and future of quadrillions of beings, then keep up what you're doing. Me, I'm going to do something about it."

Leia also stood up. "Luke, some things happen no matter what you do. Haven't you ever read those time traveling stories where someone travels back in time to save someone from dying but they end up dying another way? Some things just can't be undone."

"I refuse to believe that," Luke replied. "I've already told you what I believe. I'm going through with it."

Han and Chewbacca exchanged glances before standing up as well.

"We're helping you, Luke," Han said.

Leia looked at the three boys before growling in frustration. "I don't know why I bother saying anything. _Fine_, we'll do what we can… but if things start getting dangerous, we need to stop."

"Define dangerous," Luke laughed. "We've been living that word ever since we met on the Death Star."

Leia finally seemed to soften up and relax, laughing along with her brother. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

The foursome left the mess hall in comfortable silence and spent the rest of the day wandering around the Jedi Temple. There were so many occupants living there that they never saw a familiar face.

"I wonder where Father went," Luke said.

Chewbacca growled a warning.

"Yeah, I know," Luke replied, waving his hand dismissively. "I shouldn't call him that here."

"So any idea on how we _are_ going to make a difference?" Leia asked the group as a whole.

"Um… don't turn to the dark side, Anakin!" Han guessed jokingly. "To tell you the truth, I haven't a clue."

Chewbacca brought up a good point, saying that they couldn't help much if they didn't know the cause of the problem.

"Well what are we supposed to do, then?" Luke asked. "Who should we ask? Old Ben? That'll be an interesting visit: Oh, hi, Master Kenobi, we were just wondering how your currently-nine-year-old Padawan turns to the dark side in the future, becoming Darth Vader, and murdering trillions of beings. If you could tell us, we'd really appreciate it."

"I don't think that would go over too well," Han noted.

Leia stopped walking. "I know who we _can_ ask."

"What?"

"The only person who lived during this time in the political field and knows our secret,"

"No, no, no, _no_," Han shook his head. "She's the one who told us _not_ to do anything! How can we ask Mon? I thought this was going to be _without _her knowledge?"

"There's no other way we can do this!" Leia replied. "All I know about this time is that an unrest began in the Senate and finally someone seceded from the Republic with others following suit. Then assassination attempts began, the unrest became worse, and it turned to all-out war on Geonosis. The Clone Wars begins exactly ten years after the Invasion of Naboo. I don't know any of the details."

"You call yourself a senator?" Han gaped.

"The records were destroyed, nerf herder." Leia snapped. "Or did you never look anything historical up on HoloNet?"

"I was never interested in school, anyway," Han shrugged.

"Arguing isn't going to help," Luke interrupted. "Han, you lived during the Clone Wars and before… what exactly happened?"

Han jumped, not expecting to be asked. "Well… I don't know I was _seven_ when the war began! It was something about problems in the Senate."

Leia sighed. "I just said that."

"Well then what do you need me for?"

"I was hoping you'd have more _brains_ than that, after all, you _lived_ through it."

"Look, all I know is that there had been problems for decades where people always complained about taxes or xenophobic issues but no one ever did anything about it until Dooku stepped up and led them." Han finally explained.

"So there's no way we can stop the war?" Luke asked breathlessly.

"I don't know," Han replied. "I don't see how, considering tensions have always been there. Still, if Dooku never showed up, it probably wouldn't have added up into what it became."

"But how are we supposed to find Dooku?" Leia crossed her arms thoughtfully. "He just appeared out of nowhere… like Vader."

Chewbacca smacked his hands together.

"What is it?" Han asked.

Chewie explained that Dooku had been a Jedi once.

"How in the blazes do you know _that_?" Leia gaped.

Chewie shrugged with a twinkle in his eye. Leia sighed in exasperation.

"Well, the point is, we know now." Luke went on hastily. "But where is Dooku now? Is he still a Jedi?"

"That's doubtful," Leia said. "He'd need a lot of time to organize his little Confederacy."

"Ten years' worth?" Luke asked.

Leia shrugged. "It does take a lot of work."

As they were talking, a tall Jedi with dark brown hair, a trimmed mustache and beard, and a dignified, somewhat stuffy air about him walked down the corridor. Luke and the others hastily sidestepped to avoid getting stomped on. Off in the distance, they heard Anakin and Obi-Wan talking, heading their way.

"Uh…" Han looked around wildly. "Any ideas?"

"If we're going to help, we'd better start now," Luke told them. "Let's just say hi when they walk by."

"And that's going to help how?" Han asked.

"It's a start," Leia said. "Besides, I seriously doubt that he trusts us right now."

"Right, good point," Han nodded.

Obi-Wan walked right by them, offering a smile. Anakin looked at them before quickly looking away.

After the two left, Luke heaved a heavy sigh. "This is going to be a long day, isn't it?"

………

Jedi were walking to and fro, completely oblivious to two figures watching from the shadows.

"I'm blaming you," the older sounding one was saying. "This was your idea."

"You heard what she prayed for, though." The younger voice argued. "This won't get them anywhere. They're grasping at thin air."

The older one sighed. "I don't know why I do this…"

The younger voice shouted in triumph, and then everything dissolved.

………

Han shifted around in bed, not able to go to sleep. The whole situation was getting complicated and it had him worried. What were they going to do now? They couldn't just waltz around and do what they wanted, this wasn't a game! How were they going to do this? They didn't even know the source of the problem!

Moaning in irritation and hopelessness, Han sat up, suddenly confused. His voice sounded odd…

Han stood up and noticed that he felt a lot… taller. He quickly ran over to the right wall in the room and looked in the mirror… no…

Oh, good Force, Han was a _teenager_!

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**Don't fret over the semi-cliffie, I'll have the next chapter up soon! Please review!**


	11. History Class

**Oh, my it's been a little while. I am sorry for these long waits I put you guys through... I've been having difficulty writing this story, but fear not, I will not abandon it!**

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"What in the blazes happened last night?"

When Han ran out of his room and discovered that the other Jedi were already awake since it was five thirty in the morning, he rushed off to find Luke, Leia, and Chewbacca. They were older too.

"Did we jump ahead in time or something? Where are we?" Leia asked.

"Well apparently we're still in the Jedi Temple," Luke replied. "The question is _what time_ is this?"

"Its 05:30," someone answered for them. They jumped and turned around to see a teenager with speckled brown hair and a braid going down his right shoulder. The rest of his hair was pulled back. Wasn't that the style of a Padawan?

The Padawan looked at them with his deep blue eyes. "You'd better get ready for the day."

He walked by them without another word.

"Who was that?" Han asked, bewildered. The others could only shrug… except for Leia.

"Oh, no," she breathed.

"What?"

"That was… that was _Anakin_,"

………

Mon looked around her apartment. It had changed… _she_ had changed. And where was Treesha?

"Treesha?" she called out hesitantly. What had happened? "Hello?"

"Did you call for me, my lady?" a handmaid entered the room.

"Where's Treesha?" Mon asked.

"I'm sorry, milady but I don't know who Treesha is," the handmaid replied. "Are you feeling well?"

Mon caught herself before she went on asking insane questions. "Yes… yes, I'm fine. What's today's date again?"

"Today's Satunda, milady," the handmaid answered. "Yómil thirty-first,"

Mon suppressed a growl of frustration. She needed the _year_ but she couldn't ask for that. Instead, she just nodded her head patiently. "Thank you,"

A thought struck her as Mon walked over to her desk where data pads were strewn in every possible nook and cranny. She grabbed one of the data pads and activated it, looking at the date: 12:10:31

Mon nearly dropped the data pad. That was almost ten years after the invasion of Naboo! What had happened? How did she end up here? Where were the others in all of this?

Dropping her composure, Mon let out a dirty curse. "Stang,"

………

"Oh, Force, going through puberty _once_ was bad enough!" Han complained. "I don't even want to _know_ what Darth Vader's like when he's got mood swing and hormones coursing through his body."

"Han, stop calling him that," Luke replied.

"Well, no offense, Luke, but I wasn't planning on dealing with an irate teenage-Anakin-Skywalker-soon-to-be-Darth-Vader when I got up!"

"We weren't expecting a lot of things when we got out of bed to discuss the Imperials getting closer to Coruscant." Leia pointed out.

Chewbacca merely shook his head and then laughed. The other three shot glares as the Wookiee joked, saying that it would be interesting if Anakin got a crush on Leia.

"Chewie, you're disgusting," Leia snapped, blushing.

Luke looked horrified at his sister's reaction. "Leia, why are you _blushing_?"

Han shuddered. "You know, I knew you guys were messed up when I found out Vader was your father, but this just takes the cake."

"Wha—_no,_ you _nerf herder_, I don't have a _crush_ on him," Leia snarled in Han's direction, causing the teenager to cower behind Chewbacca. "I'm just… embarrassed."

"Did you actually think Chewbacca was _serious_?"

"NO!"

The argument settled and then Luke asked, "So, what now? I mean, we just blew any chance on trying to stop Dooku."

"We don't even know the _date_," Leia sighed.

"Well that can easily be fixed," Han smacked his hands together and then turned to face the nearest Jedi, who looked a little stressed. "Excuse me, what's today's date?"

"What?" the man blinked before processing the question. "Oh, uh… today's Satunda, Yómil thirty-first,"

"What's the year?" Han asked, causing Luke, Leia, and Chewbacca to glare daggers in his direction.

The Jedi gave them a blank stare. Something about the man seemed familiar to Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewie. "Excuse me?"

"It's a trivia," Han replied smoothly. "So, what's the year?"

The Jedi seemed to shrug off the odd question and just answered, "Year twelve,"

Casting the group one last confused stare, the man turned away and walked down the hall. Leia took the opportunity to smack Han across the back of his head. "You laser-brained idiot, what were you thinking?"

"Ouch! I just got the answer to your question and you _hit_ me for it?"

"That was a _really_ smart way of doing it, you murglak!"

"Okay, I think you guys are letting the hormones get to you," Luke sighed, getting in the middle of the fight. Unfortunately, he hadn't realized that the argument degenerated into a smacking contest and Leia hit him right across the face just as Han punched his arm. Luke flinched and yelled out before tumbling to the ground. Han and Leia tackled each other. Chewbacca just watched and shook his head, laughing out loud.

The Jedi that had been asked Han's bizarre question paused and faced the group, noticing the fight. He walked over and dragged Leia and Han apart before helping Luke to his feet. "It isn't very civilized to fight like dogs."

"S-sorry," Leia muttered, embarrassed and irritated at the same time. She settled for glaring intensely at Han.

"By the way, have I met you all before?" the man asked. "I'm sure I've seen your faces somewhere,"

_Ben!_ Luke's mind called out as recognition finally dawned upon him. "Uh… I think we met a long time ago."

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. "Yes… wait, you're that child from… good Force I haven't seen you in ten years!"

"You've got some memory," Han said. "I wouldn't have remembered you if you didn't mention that…"

"We just saw your Padawan," Luke commented. "How's he doing?"

Obi-Wan smiled. "Perhaps you can ask him after class, young one. What about you? Who is your master?"

Luke froze as terror flooded him. _Stang, now what, come on, think, think, THINK!! _

Suddenly, a name appeared in his head and he immediately said it. "Master Evan Asani,"

………

"You _must_ be joking, you told him to say _Evan Asani_?" the elder shadow bickered with the younger one, who growled in irritation.

"Yes, what's wrong with that? At least there won't be any loose ends! Besides, you didn't know him—"

"Oh, just because he's an obscure Jedi doesn't mean it's impossible for him to be found," the first one said. "And if that _does_ happen and they discover that Luke _isn't_ his Padawan, I'm not helping you get them out of that mess."

"What?"

"After all, as I said earlier, this was _your_ crazy idea."

"Yes, _my_ crazy idea that you went along with,"

"You said originally that it was for viewing _only_, not _living_,"

"So I changed the rules a little bit; what difference does that make?"

"A _lot_,"

………

Han felt like his mind had gone numb. The group had finally found out where the classes took place and were sitting in the most boring galactic history class Han had even heard of. The old Jedi Master paced in front of the room, lecturing the Padawans. Even _they_ looked like they were half dead.

Luke sat beside him, stifling a yawn, when he suddenly began poking Han rigorously.

"Ow, ouch, what?" Han hissed.

Luke motioned to the long table two risers below them. Han looked and saw a familiar tuft of sandy blonde hair. "Is that…?"

Luke nodded and then pointed Anakin out to the others.

"_Now_ what do we do?" Leia whispered.

Han was already solving their problem. Scribbling quickly with his pen, Han crumpled up a piece of flimsiplast and sent it flying towards Anakin's head. When it bounced off, the teenager jumped and looked up to see it land on the desk in front of him. He quickly unfolded it and read the message, which said, _Hey, Skywalker, am I the only one who thinks this is a horrible class? I think that Jedi Master is the real piece of history in here._

The boy let out a snort of laughter but stopped quickly when the note was snatched out of his hands by the Jedi Master. "What do you have here, Padawan Skywalker?"

"Um, I just…" Anakin trailed off awkwardly.

When the end of the class came, Han and Anakin were stuck scrubbing the floors in the kitchens. Luke, Leia, and Chewbacca went to contact Mon.

"This is stupid," Han grumbled irritably. "I mean, come _on_, I was just stating a truth."

Anakin laughed. "They don't allow that here."

"Why?"

"That's the way the Jedi are," Anakin shrugged. "They never get to the point."

As amusing as the comment was, it frightened Han. How old was this kid? He was probably eighteen or nineteen. To have that view of the Jedi as a teenager is a dangerous thing, _particularly_ if it's Darth Vader!

"Hey, have I seen you from somewhere?" Anakin suddenly asked as he sat on his feet to rest. "You look awfully familiar,"

_What is it with Jedi and good memory?_ Han sighed mentally before saying, "Yeah, I think I saw you a long time ago… like about ten years ago."

Anakin blinked before chuckling and then laughing. "Oh, you were with the weird ones."

"What weird ones?"

"You know, you guys just acted so weird around me… where have you been all these years? I should have seen you in class _some_ time… who's your master?"

"Master Millen Falcon," Han said without thinking. It was the best name he could come up with.

"I've never heard of him,"

"Nah, he's pretty subdued. And busy. And he is always going on missions. And stuff."

"Okay…"

"Yeah…"

The two stared at each other for a moment longer before they both just laughed and returned to scrubbing.

………

"Don't you understand? The Clone Wars is about to begin."

"Well… but—oh good _Force_ what are we going to do?"

Luke, Leia, Chewbacca, and Mon were sitting in a diner, all wearing casual clothes. They had been discussing their new predicament. Luke suggested that they try now more than ever to get close to Anakin. Leia was hesitant but understood the importance of it, even though she argued by saying they didn't even know how he turned in the first place. Chewbacca was on Luke's side of the argument. Mon was observant, her mind preoccupied on the issues with the senate.

"This is just crazy, how are we going to know if we're doing him any good?" Leia asked.

"We won't know," Luke shook his head. "But we still have to try."

_It's not like things can get much worse._ Chewbacca growled.

Leia sighed. "I suppose… I wonder how Han's faring."

"Well, we'd better go and find out." Luke said and they all rose.

"Are you going to be alright, Mon?" Leia asked the woman.

Mon ran her hand through her hair and sighed tiredly. "I should be fine. I'll see what I can do in the senate. Good luck with Vader."

"May the Force be with you, Mon," Luke said.

Mon nodded. "May it be with you four. You're going to need it more than me."

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**Please review. I need inspiration! **


	12. Force Vision

"I swear, if I get any more homework I'm going to be sick," Han grumbled.

Once Luke, Leia, and Chewbacca had returned from their conversation with Mon, they had found Han and Anakin plotting to blow up one of the kitchen ovens as an act of revenge for scrubbing the floors. The Skywalker twins and Chewie quickly dragged Han out by his hair and casually reminded Anakin that they still had classes to attend.

"I hope you _do_ get sick," Leia snapped. "We're trying to _prevent_ Vader from falling to the Dark Side and you're _encouraging_ revenge?"

"It's just playful pranks," Han shot back.

"We don't know just how playful it is to Anakin," Luke pointed out.

_Did you talk to him about something _besides_ blowing things up?_ Chewbacca asked.

"Well, sort of," Han shrugged. "He does seem to have issues with the Jedi. He doesn't give me the impression of feeling very at home here."

"I have noticed between classes that he avoids the other Padawans," Luke noted.

"Either that or they avoid him," Leia intoned.

"Great," Han moaned. "The entire Jedi Order is out to stop us now."

"Let's see if we can find him."

The group stopped walking and looked around the crowd of Jedi passing through the hallway. Chewbacca grunted in Shyriiwook and pointed off in the distance. Luke could make out his father's silhouette.

"Hey, Anakin!" Luke shouted as they ran towards him.

His father paused and turned around, having a suspicious look on his face. It was almost as if he didn't trust them at all. "Yes?"

"We just wanted to say hi," Luke shrugged in a friendly manner.

"Hey, did you hear about the Aqualish secession?" Leia asked, garnering a funny look from the three boys.

Anakin, however, understood her meaning. "Yes… things just keep getting worse."

"I guess Palpatine's having some trouble." Leia went on, studying their father's reaction very carefully.

"He's trying to hold the Republic together," Anakin replied, a hint of defensiveness in his tone. "It's not exactly easy when the other side doesn't want to negotiate."

"Well what do you think? Do you think we should go to war?"

"I don't want a war," Anakin shook his head. "But it just seems like debating about it isn't going anywhere."

"So you suggest we take action?" Leia pursued.

"Possibly, yeah,"

"And what about Palpatine? What do you think of him in all of this?"

"Palpatine's a great man," Anakin suddenly said. "He's doing his best. Any lesser man would have crumbled under pressure by now."

Luke found himself in shock. Is that really what his father thought of Palpatine?

"Do you know him personally?" Luke suddenly asked.

"Yes, he's a friend," Anakin nodded.

"How close of a friend?" Han queried, his tone carrying worry.

"Very close," Anakin replied. "He's always been there for me."

"He's a politician," Leia pointed out.

Anakin sighed. "You sound like Obi-Wan."

"You should listen to your master, you know," Luke said quickly. "He is very wise."

"Not from what I've seen,"

Luke paused, shocked. How could he say that?

"Please, do me a favor," Leia said, some desperation leaking into her voice. "Please… just avoid Palpatine for a while. If anything, you don't want to stress him. You've got realize that he's under a lot of pressure as you yourself said. I'm sure a visit from you, laying your woes on him, will only make things worse."

Anakin watched her and it seemed as if he were actually listening. He shrugged. "I guess… why do you care, anyway?"

_Just some friendly advice_, Chewbacca answered.

"Padawan, come here!"

Everyone turned to see Obi-Wan calling out. Anakin sighed and looked at them for a moment, saying, "Well, I'll see you later."

He walked towards Obi-Wan and the two exchanged some words before walking towards the turbolift and leaving the area.

Luke leaned against the wall, placing a hand on his forehead. "What a nightmare. How could he have such a low opinion of Ben?"

_I don't know_. Chewbacca shook his head slowly.

"Come on," Leia said. "Let's get to dinner.

………

Dinner was silent but delicious nonetheless. The four had been pondering over what Anakin had revealed through their conversation. Leia couldn't believe Palpatine had befriended him. That guy really was a good for nothing son of a Sith harlot.

Leia sighed as she twisted and turned in bed. She couldn't get to sleep with all of these thoughts rushing through her mind. Finally, she settled for counting shaaks and quickly drifted away…

_Leia found herself standing on Tatooine, in an area that looked strikingly like a moisture farm. It rather looked like the Lars Homestead, or at least from what she had seen through the holograms Luke provided. She saw Anakin standing there alongside a beautiful young woman with brown hair and eyes. The woman had a concerned and somewhat frightened look on her face. Anakin looked livid._

"_It's Obi-Wan. He's holding me back!"_

_Suddenly everything shifted and sand blew around as if a sandstorm had started in the room. Leia covered her face with her arms and looked away and then she felt it suddenly subside. Peeking out between her arms, Leia noticed that she was now in some room in the Jedi Temple. A dark-skinned Human male was sitting talking to a hologram of what looked like Yoda. The hologram fizzled and died and then the Jedi sat contemplating the conversation. _

_The door opened and Leia saw a tall figure collapse against the door frame, leaning all the weight on it for support._

"_Master… Master Windu…?"_

_The Jedi Leia had just been watching was at the silhouette in an instant. "Skywalker? What's wrong? Are you hurt?"_

_Anakin grabbed the Jedi's arm and used it as a crutch, clinging desperately. "Obi-Wan… I need to talk to _Obi-Wan—_!"_

"_Obi-Wan is operational on Utapau; he has destroyed General Grievous."_

_The image faded into darkness and then a dark murky red burned into Leia's eyes. Everything was red and black. Unbearable heat stung her lungs. She could see two figures on a black bank with a lava river going up against it. One figure was standing. The other was lying on the ground, steadily slipping towards the lava. _

"_Obi-Wan…?" the figure lying on the ground said faintly._

"_You were the chosen one! It was said you would destroy the Sith, not join them. It was you who would bring balance to the Force, not leave it in darkness! You were my brother, Anakin! I loved you but I could not save you." The other figure yelled, pain etched in every word. _

"I hate you!!"_ the other screamed with such rage it made Leia flinch._

_Then that too faded and Leia was left listening to a roar of voices, though they all belonged to the same two people: Anakin and Obi-Wan._

"_He's holding me back!"_

"_Don't make Anakin choose between me and Palpatine."_

"_Of course you're my friend,"_

"_I need to talk to _Obi-Wan_—!"_

"_You're going to need me on this one, Master,"_

"_You are wise and strong, Anakin. You are a credit to the Jedi Order, and you have far surpassed my humble efforts at instruction."_

"_Just the other day, you were saying that my power is no credit to me."_

"_I'm not speaking of your power, Anakin, but of your heart. The greatness in you is a greatness of spirit. Courage and generosity, compassion and commitment… these are your virtues. You have done great things, and I am very proud of you."_

"_I _hate_ you!!"_

"_You were my brother, Anakin! I loved you but I could not save you."_

"_I loved you…"_

Leia jumped out of her bed, gasping and coughing as if she had emerged from an ocean. Sweat caked her forehead. She lay on the floor, shivering and crying. What _was_ that? She had seen so many images and felt so many different emotions that she felt as if she were a wet rag being wrung out.

The one thought that kept going through her mind, though, was what allowed her to calm down. This one thought brought a new confidence to her. This one thought allowed her world to repair itself so she could breathe again and could sit up without trembling.

_Obi-Wan loved Anakin and Anakin loved Obi-Wan back. _

"_You were my brother, Anakin!"_

It wasn't _Anakin_ that the group needed to be talking to, it was _Obi-Wan_. It had been from the very beginning. Only through him would Anakin listen.

But what were they to say? An image from her nightmare reassembled itself and she examined it closely, remembering Anakin and the Human Jedi he had been talking to.

"_Obi-Wan… I need to talk to _Obi-Wan_—!"_

"_Obi-Wan is operational on Utapau,"_

He wasn't there. Anakin needed him and he wasn't there.

Leia found her answer.

She immediately stood and threw a robe over her nightclothes. She didn't even bother putting on boots or making her hair look presentable.

She just ran.

She spent almost half an hour grabbing the boys and gathering them in the garden. It was probably midnight; the garden was dark and quiet, save for the sounds of water crashing from the waterfall and the trickling of the fountains.

"What's this all about?" Han slurred.

"I found a way," Leia said breathlessly. "I found a way to change things. I found a way to save him!"

"Only you could find a way at one in the morning," Han mumbled, but Leia could tell he was interested now.

"What did you find?" Luke asked.

"It was a dream of some sort…" Leia muttered and then all of her confidence vanished. She was basing everything off of a _nightmare_. Was this really valuable information or false hope? Nevertheless, she continued, saying, "I… I saw Anakin and Obi-Wan. They went through a lot of turmoil but they loved each other. They relied on each other. They were practically _inseparable_. I think Palpatine somehow wedged himself between them and then struck at Anakin when Obi-Wan wasn't there. Obi-Wan is Anakin's shield from Palpatine. He is the steadying rock in the storm of the Dark Side. Somehow they got separated… I think the war made them distant. And then… then Obi-Wan had to go to Utapau for something and Anakin needed to talk to him, he _wanted_ to talk to him, and Obi-Wan wasn't there. Don't you get it? _Obi-Wan's the key!_"

The other three remained silent and then Chewbacca said, _This is all from a _dream_?_

"No," Luke shook his head. "That was a vision,"

"But how could Obi-Wan be the key?" Han asked. "You all heard Anakin's opinion of him. How could he love him?"

"I don't know," Leia shook her head. "I think he has some major trust issues with Obi-Wan but when it comes down to it, he does love him."

_How are we going to tell him all of this?_ Chewbacca inquired. _We can't just waltz up to Obi-Wan and tell him to stick to Anakin like the galaxy depends on it._

"No… but we can tell him to keep close," Luke muttered thoughtfully.

"Do you really think he's going to listen to a bunch of Padawans?" Han looked at Luke incredulously.

"I don't know if he's going to listen," Luke shook his head. "But Ben always struck me as the type to take advice no matter where it came from, as long as it was good advice. Surely he would see the truth in our statement if—"

"Luke you have too much faith in him," Leia interrupted. "You have to remember he doesn't know you here. You're just a Padawan to him. We need to tell him something that will happen so he knows we mean business."

"What do you mean?" Han asked with a hint of suspicion in his tone. "You're not actually suggesting we tell him we're from the _future_ do you? He'll think we're insane!"

"No, Han, I'm not stupid," Leia rolled her eyes. "But if we used the guise of a 'Force vision' he might listen."

_Are you saying we tell him that we had a vision of his Padawan becoming Darth Vader or something?_ Chewie asked.

"Sort of," Leia shrugged. "We can tell him that a large conflict is coming and his Padawan will be torn away from him by the darkness. I think that should be cryptic enough to cover our part in it, but still discernable."

"Sounds good to me," Luke said. "Who's going to tell him?"

"You should, Luke," Leia replied. "Out of all of us you know him the best and you're the most experienced 'Jedi' of the group."

"Right…" Luke sighed. "I'm glad we found a way but I've got a bad feeling about this. What happens if Palpatine finds out?"

"What do you mean? He's not going to find out, we've never seen him." Han pointed out.

"Well what are _we_ going to do during the Clone Wars?" Luke suddenly asked. "I mean, if the date's correct the war starts in less than a _month_!"

"How should I know?" Han asked.

Chewbacca suddenly paused and then told them to be quiet. Luke seemed to tense and then pointed towards the hallway inside the Temple. Han and Leia exchanged confused glances.

"What is it?" Leia whispered. Then she sensed it as well. It felt like Obi-Wan. "Is Obi-Wan nearby?"

"Yes," Luke nodded. "Along with Father,"

They all grew silent and crept towards the Master/Padawan pair.

"Why do we have to leave in the middle of the night, Master?" Anakin yawned.

"So we can arrive in the morning on Ansion," Obi-Wan replied. "Come along, Padawan."

"Ansion?" Luke repeated, sounding bewildered.

Leia mulled it over before snapping her fingers. "They're going on a mission!"

"Well _that's _not good!" Han whispered heatedly.

_Luke now would be a good time!_ Chewbacca urged.

"With Father right there?" Luke pointed to Anakin.

"He'll probably go ahead or something," Han surmised. "Come on, let's just follow them."

"Won't he sense us?" Leia asked.

Luke shook his head. "I've been practicing hiding myself in the Force. I'm sure I can hide you guys too. Besides, it's in the middle of the night; the two of them will be groggy."

"You're putting a lot of faith in their exhaustion," Leia noted.

"Nobody's perfect," Luke shrugged.

The group crept along the corridor, following the pair of Jedi. Just as Han had assumed, Obi-Wan sent Anakin ahead, telling him to prep the engines. He then paused and turned around.

"I believe you can stop hiding now,"

They all jumped and then Luke suddenly tumbled towards Obi-Wan. "Please, Master Kenobi, you have to listen to us."

"What's wrong, young Padawan?" Obi-Wan asked.

"I—my friend had a vision," Luke explained, motioning towards Leia. "She says she couldn't decipher a lot of it, but something big and horrible is going to happen very soon and—and…"

"And your Padawan is going to be in trouble," Leia quickly intervened.

"My Padawan is going to be in trouble?" Obi-Wan repeated, sounding a little bewildered.

"A great conflict is coming, Master Kenobi," Leia said. "If you don't keep your Padawan close he'll be consumed by the darkness. Please, you have to be careful and watch him closely!"

"Calm down, Padawan, and we can discern this," Obi-Wan said.

Leia suppressed a growl of frustration. Obi-Wan wasn't listening to her! "Master Kenobi, I don't care how crazy this sounds, but you _must listen_! Isn't that what Jedi are taught? Aren't they taught to be mindful of these sorts of things? I had a vision and it was about Anakin!"

"I am listening," Obi-Wan insisted calmly. "But if you yell at me in a panic it won't help the situation. Now calm yourself and tell me what you saw."

Leia took a deep breath.

"I saw… I saw two armies fighting each other on a sandy battlefield." She knew she was lying, but she also knew that there was no other way to tell him. She couldn't tell him she saw him fighting on a volcanic planet… or at least not in detail. "Many were killed. Then the battle spread across the entire galaxy. You were fighting in it and so was your Padawan. As time passed, you two grew further and further apart. Finally, Anakin just turned his back on you and the rest of the Jedi and the darkness took him.

"You have to keep him close to you, Master Kenobi. I think it was someone who he considered a friend who took him away from you. Please just be vigilant. It could be anyone."

Obi-Wan remained silent, and it actually looked like he was assimilating the information. "I will take your vision to heart, young one. Now please, return to your quarters."

While a part of her hoped that he really had taken it to heart, the more logical side was saying that he would merely store it in the back of his mind as an odd incident. Hopelessness washed over her and she lowered her head, turning away. Han, Luke, and Chewbacca quickly followed her out of the hallway.

"Do you really think he heard you?" Han asked.

"No," Leia shook her head, her voice cracking. "I really don't,"

"What were you talking about with the sand and the battle?" Luke inquired.

Leia sighed. "I was telling him about the Battle of Geonosis. It's the first battle in the Clone Wars and he was in it."

_Then you have nothing to worry about,_ Chewbacca said reassuringly. _When that battle comes he'll remember what you said to him and then he'll think twice about your vision._

"I hope you're right, Chewie," Leia muttered and then they all returned to their rooms.

Leia stared at the ceiling before closing her eyes to go to sleep. "I hope you're right."

………

"Was that vision your doing?"

"No, it wasn't."

"Well that's a relief." The older voice sighed. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know how much longer I can do this,"

"This was _your_ idea in the first place,"

"I'm not saying I can't bear it, I just can't _do_ it."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying we should pull out."

"What? And just leave them?"

"There's nothing more they can do. They'll get themselves _killed_."

"Considering how much they've already changed I'm surprised they haven't been _erased_ yet!"

"Yeah, well, it's coming close and I can't stop that. We have to go."

The older one sighed. "You're as reckless as ever,"

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**The quotes in the vision belong to George Lucas and Matthew Stover from the movie _Attack of the Clones_ and the novelization of _The Revenge of the Sith_. Please review!**


	13. War and Resting in Peace?

**Okay, wow, two years is WAY too long a wait. So so so so so so sooo sorry about that. I had lost all inspiration for this story for the longest time - it's my first and pretty sloppy in my opinion. Still, for some inexplicable reason (but good for you guys!) I suddenly had the urge to work on it and I managed to produce this chapter. :) And I assure you, updates will be quick and smooth - no more years of waiting, hehe... sorry about that. -_-**

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Obi-Wan Kenobi sat cross-legged beside the bed. In the bed was his Padawan, who was in a healing trance.

There was war now. It was a galactic-wide war. Obi-Wan and Anakin had barely survived Geonosis… he could only imagine the terror and devastation this new Clone War would bring to the people of the galaxy.

What bothered him even more was a memory playing in the back of his mind. He couldn't quite remember what it was until he closed his eyes and began to meditate upon it.

"_Anakin, go prep the engines for takeoff," Obi-Wan said to his tired Padawan. "Master Unduli and her Padawan will join us shortly."_

"_Yes, Master," he said in a dull tone, trudging towards the hangar._

_Obi-Wan watched him for a moment before turning his attention to the group of Padawans that had been following him since they passed the garden. He wondered what they were doing awake at such an ungodly hour of the morning._

"_I believe you can stop hiding now," he said calmly._

_He immediately saw the four Padawans jump in surprise. Then, a nineteen-year-old Human approached him. He recognized him as the boy from earlier in the day. The boy's eyes reminded him strikingly of Anakin. It was uncanny how much the two were alike. _

"_Please, Master Kenobi, you have to listen to us," he pleaded._

_What was wrong? Why were these Padawans in such a panicked state? "What's wrong, young Padawan?"_

"_I—my friend had a vision," the boy said, motioning towards a female Human of the same age with long brown hair and determined brown eyes. She rather reminded him of someone he had seen before, but he couldn't quite place a finger on it… "She says she couldn't decipher a lot of it, but something big and horrible is going to happen very soon and—and…"_

_The boy trailed off uncertainly and the girl immediately continued. "And your Padawan is going to be in trouble,"_

_Obi-Wan blinked. "My Padawan is going to be in trouble?"_

"_A great conflict is coming, Master Kenobi. If you don't keep your Padawan close he'll by consumed by the darkness. Please, you have to be careful and watch him closely!"_

_Obi-Wan stared at her, shock running through his system. Anakin would be consumed by darkness? Why would she even have a vision about Anakin? What were the circumstances of this? What great conflict was she speaking of?_

"_Calm down, Padawan," Obi-Wan said more so to calm himself rather than her. "And we can discern this,"_

_The teenager looked somewhat exasperated and grew even more desperate, nearly yelling, "Master Kenobi, I don't care how crazy this sounds, but you must listen! Isn't that what Jedi are taught? Aren't they taught to be mindful of these sorts of things? I had a vision and it was about Anakin!"_

_Taking a different approach, Obi-Wan said, "I am listening, but if you tell me in a panic it won't help the situation. Now calm yourself and tell me what you saw."_

_The girl took a deep breath and then explained. "I saw… I saw two armies fighting each other on a sandy battlefield. Many were killed. Then the battle spread across the entire galaxy. You were fighting in it and so was your Padawan. As time passed, you two grew further and further apart. Finally, Anakin just turned his back on you and the rest of the Jedi and the darkness took him._

"_You have to keep him close to you, Master Kenobi. I think it was someone who he considered a friend who took him away from you. Please just be vigilant. It could be anyone."_

_Obi-Wan remained silent. Her vision was rather vivid and detailed. Perhaps he should take it into consideration. However, now was not the time to be concerned with a teenager's strange visions. He had to concern himself with the mission. He vaguely remembered Qui-Gon telling him to be mindful of what was happening here and now._

"_I will take your vision to heart, young one," Obi-Wan said to her. "Now, please, return to your quarters."_

Obi-Wan opened his eyes. Two armies fighting each other on a sandy battlefield… Geonosis suddenly appeared in his mind's eye and he gasped. Good Force, it really was a vision!

He stood and looked at his Padawan. The boy's right arm had been severed by Count Dooku.

A feeling of protectiveness overcame Obi-Wan, but he shook it off. No, wait… Jedi weren't allowed to have attachment. He had to keep that in mind.

Still, he couldn't just _let_ his Padawan walk into danger like that. He was his master; it was his duty to _protect_ Anakin! He had to at least take the warning to heart. He had to keep Anakin close to him.

...

Han moaned and then opened his eyes upon hearing his voice. It sounded… _normal_! He sounded like his old self again!

The only unsettling thing now was that he was floating in darkness. What had happened?

"Luke? Leia? Chewie?"

His voice echoed as if he were floating in a large empty room. He couldn't see a thing. The whole situation was quickly beginning to unsettle him greatly.

"Han, is that you?" he heard echoing around. He couldn't pinpoint the location.

"Yeah! Luke, where are you?"

"I… I don't know. I can't see a thing!"

"Neither can I! Have you seen Leia or Chewbacca?"

"I… I think I saw Leia…"

"Well…" Han looked around uncertainly. The immense blackness was really beginning to disturb him. "At least we're our regular ages again…"

"Yeah," Luke huffed. "Very reassuring when we're stuck in some black pit with no gravity and no way to get out,"

"Okay, fine, look at the negative side, then!" Han snapped irritably.

"Han? Luke?" A feminine voice called out in a near panic.

"Leia!" Han and Luke immediately replied.

"Where the blazes are we?" Leia called.

Chewbacca's growl quickly followed Leia's question.

"Chewie!" Han shouted. "Where are you?"

Chewbacca shot a snarl in response. _I have no idea, and it's really starting to get on my nerves!_

"I know, buddy," Han muttered, trying desperately to see anything in the blackness and failing miserably. His heart clenched, and he felt unusually claustrophobic despite knowing that he was, somehow, actually floating in a huge space.

"Where's Mon?" Leia asked.

Han gritted his teeth. "I don't know."

"Does anybody have any idea how we got here?" Luke sounded like he was getting a similar claustrophobic feeling as Han.

"I have no idea," Han shook his head. "I just fell asleep like Obi-Wan suggested…"

"You don't think Obi-Wan's here, do you?" Leia questioned.

"I doubt it," Luke sighed.

"Chewie, do you hear Mon?" Han called out, but there was no response. "Chewie?"

"Chewbacca?" Leia called as well.

There was still silence in reply.

"Chewie!" Han yelled, growing panicked.

"_Chewie!"_

Suddenly, Han felt the air being sucked out of his lungs. He gasped, clutching his throat and kicking his legs at the air. Tears stung in his eyes, and he suddenly felt so alone. He tried calling out for Luke or Leia, but their names suddenly escaped his memory. He was all alone in the black nothingness. And it terrified him.

Screaming inwardly, Han felt the darkness engulf him and he closed his eyes.

...

"I still don't hear Chewie," Leia muttered worriedly. She then belatedly noticed that Han had stopped calling. "Han, are you okay?"

Han didn't respond.

"Han?" Luke called. The panic in his voice was beginning to seep inside of Leia as well. They had just heard Han a moment ago! "Han!"

Leia tried to sense for Han, even though she wasn't that experienced, but that's when she felt even more terrified. She couldn't feel _anything_. Leia felt as if she were in a vacuum, sucking the life out of the area. She couldn't feel Luke.

She couldn't even feel herself.

"Luke?" her voice quivered as she spoke.

"I'm still here, Leia," Luke said reassuringly. "But I don't think Han is…"

"We'll find him," Leia tried to sound determined, but she was losing her composure.

Suddenly, a light caught Leia's eye. Or, her mind's eye, she supposed. The light didn't seem to be external. Rather, it was as if someone had turned on a glow stick in her head. Blurry images were beginning to form. "Luke, do you…?"

"I see it," Luke said. "I think,"

As Leia focused more on the image, the blackness seemed to fade, but so did her awareness of Luke. She suddenly found herself standing in a circular room with twelve chairs. Each chair was occupied by a Jedi. She recognized Yoda, who was there through a transmission, and, more alarmingly, she recognized the bald dark-skinned Human from her vision about Anakin. They all seemed irritated or uncertain about something, and they were all looking at one Jedi in particular, who Leia immediately could tell was Obi-Wan. His manner and twinkling eyes gave his identity away, but he looked immensely older than when Leia had just seen him before. His hair had streaks of grey beginning to seep in, and his face was lined and slightly pale.

"Skywalker must stay," the dark-skinned Jedi stressed. "He has to keep an eye on the chancellor's dealings."

"Anakin cannot handle that assignment," Obi-Wan argued, shaking his head. "I've seen it weighing on him since we ordered him to do so."

"He's unable to handle the pressure?" another Jedi asked.

Obi-Wan shook his head. "Something else is bothering Anakin. He won't talk to me about it, but it's affecting his work. And…"

Obi-Wan hesitated, his eyes clouding and for a moment, just a moment, he seemed to be looking right at Leia. "And I think Palpatine's influencing Anakin in the wrong direction,"

The other Jedi remained silent, watching Obi-Wan and waiting for an explanation. Obi-Wan sighed heavily. "Anakin… the war has affected Anakin badly, I've never doubted that. Now, with the way Anakin is, he finds no peace anywhere, least of all here in the Temple. He needs to be on the battlefield, in his mind. I don't approve of that thought process, so I normally ensure that he remains in the Temple whenever we are here on Coruscant. However, that restlessness never left him, and now, with all this political intrigue and spying going on… it's just not Anakin. Anakin is a simple, pure, honest man. You all know this; if he doesn't approve of something, he'll tell you, flat out. But he can't do that in this assignment, and he's going against every principle he knows. The pressure from all that is _hurting_ him; it's making him darker, more distant. He's listening to Palpatine's advice and opinions more than he is listening to us. We all think it's suspicious that clone intelligence reported to Palpatine directly instead of to us, but Anakin thinks it's natural. Anakin thinks that the chancellor should have just as much control in the military forces as we do. Don't any of you find this just a little unsettling?"

The other Jedi seemed to debate the subject internally, exchanging glances with each other. Finally, Yoda let out a troubled sigh. "Watching the chancellor, we always must be."

Obi-Wan seemed to be getting desperate. He sat on the edge of his seat, eying Yoda directly. "Please, Master Yoda, just allow Anakin to accompany me to Utapau."

Leia's breath caught. _Utapau!_

Yoda remained silent for a while, gripping his gimer stick. Obi-Wan seemed to be holding his breath. Finally, Yoda said, "Against my better judgment this is. Nonetheless, accompany you, Skywalker will."

Obi-Wan released his breath quietly and a smile broke out on his face before he quickly conditioned his expression to be neutral once more. His eyes couldn't hide his relief, though, and he bowed his head, thanking the Jedi Master. The Jedi communicating through transmissions then left, their images fading into nothing. The remaining Jedi stood and left, Obi-Wan leaving first as he seemed to be in quite a hurry.

Leia looked around and suddenly noticed Luke across the room. "Luke!"

"They didn't see us," Luke just said.

Leia blinked. "What?"

"The Jedi," Luke motioned around the room at the now empty chairs. "They didn't see us. Look at the window, Leia. You're not here. I'm not here."

Leia furrowed her brow in confusion and then turned around to face the window. She saw the beautiful skyline of Coruscant at sunset, noticing the differences from when she last saw it, including the Star Destroyers in the upper atmosphere and the gunships flying through traffic. The most notable change was that, as Luke had said, Leia didn't see herself.

She didn't have a reflection.

"What's going on?" Leia took a step back from the window.

"I don't know," Luke sighed. "But at least we're out of that darkness,"

"Where are Han and Chewie?" Leia whirled around to face Luke once more. "Where's Mon?"

Again, Luke said, "I don't know,"

"Well then what's going on?"

Luke just shook his head.

Leia looked at the window once more, disturbed by her lack of reflection. A thought struck her, freezing her blood… if she even had any. "Are we dead?"

"It's possible," Luke replied. "I don't see how we could be, though. We were just going to bed after we told Ben about your vision."

Realization struck Leia, and the wind was knocked out of her. "Oh, merciful stars…"

Leia slowly turned to see Luke once more. Her expression must have been unnerving since Luke began to look worried.

"What is it?" Luke asked.

"We're not dead," Leia shook her head. "But we've been meddling with the past, Luke… we're… we're fading."

Luke stared at her as if he didn't understand, and then comprehension dawned on his face, followed by terror. "We're… we're fading from _existence_?"

"What else could be happening?" Leia said quickly as the words simply tumbled out from her fear. "We've been changing past events, Luke, for all we know Anakin could have never gotten with our mother and we were never even created!"

"Then… then how are we still here?" Luke suddenly was confused.

At that question, Leia was suddenly confused too. "I have no idea…"

"Maybe we can try to communicate with Obi-Wan or Father," Luke suggested hopefully. "Ben did look at you during the meeting. Didn't you notice?"

"I did…" Leia said slowly, mulling it over. "It seemed like he almost saw me…"

"Let's find him," Luke said, hurrying out of the room. Leia stumbled to keep up with him.

Leia's heart raced as the two ran without making a sound. Luke tried to hit the call button for the lift, but his hand passed through the console. Luke and Leia exchanged concerned looks, and then Luke motioned towards the stairwell.

As the two rushed down the stairs, Leia said, "How are we even going to find him?"

"Maybe I could sense him out," Luke replied. "I can feel things in the Force again, but it's almost… veiled."

"You couldn't feel anything in that darkness either?" Leia suddenly said, glad she wasn't the only one.

Luke shook his head. "No, I couldn't. It was… terrifying."

"I know," Leia nodded. "So do you think you can find Obi-Wan now?"

Luke shrugged and paused, forcing Leia to stop. He closed his eyes, furrowing his brow in concentration. "I'm… I'm not really getting a location… I'm just seeing him… he's… he's in…"

Luke's eyes popped open. "He's in the garden. Let's go!"

The two ran down numerous flights of stairs, and Leia was beginning to disprove her theory on them being dead as her chest stung from the exertion. When they finally reached the floor for the garden, Leia immediately began to notice differences that the war had caused. The Temple hallways were emptier, quieter. The people who did traverse the cavernous corridors were silent, too preoccupied in their work or thoughts to talk, and if they were talking, it was in hushed or concerned whispers. There was no laughter, there were no smiles.

Luke noticed the change in mood as well and gave Leia a sad look. Leia could only shake her head in reply. The Clone War was destructive on so many levels.

The twins finally reached the garden and began to look for Obi-Wan frantically. Like the hallway, the garden was silent save for the gentle trickling of the fountains and the distant rumbling of the waterfall. Mostly younglings were in the garden, many studying, all quiet. Any adults in the area looked like they were desperately trying to find some semblance of peace, or their eyes held a sad sort of nostalgia as if they were trying to grasp the emotions of a time before the war. Luke nudged Leia, distracting her from her observations, and pointed Obi-Wan out to her.

Obi-Wan was standing, searching for someone, most likely Anakin. Apparently he was under the impression that Anakin was somewhere in the garden.

Slowly, Luke and Leia began to walk towards Obi-Wan. "Do you really think he'll see us?"

"Do you have any better ideas?" Luke replied.

"I suppose not," Leia sighed.

Just as the twins were reaching Obi-Wan, a rustling in the leaves caught their attention and they paused. Anakin emerged from a shaded pathway, looking far too old and far too exhausted. He was no longer a Padawan; his braid had been severed, and his hair had grown nearly to his shoulders. It made him look dashing and young, and yet at the same time, it looked shaggy and unkempt as if the only reason it was long was because Anakin didn't have the time to tend to it. He had a scar by his right eye, thin and precise, making his face seem older. A single grey hair shone in the dull light, catching Leia's attention.

His eyes startled her the most. They were cold, devoid of most of the passion that had previously filled them. They were haunted, carrying memories that Anakin really didn't want to have. Most notably, they were aged, having seen too many things in too small a time. Anakin's shoulders sagged, and his expression was bleak. He looked like he was barely holding himself together.

"You called, Master?" Anakin prompted. His voice was darker and gravelly, cracking slightly as if he hadn't used it in a few hours.

"You look awful," Obi-Wan commented. "You'd better clean yourself up before we leave."

Anakin's exhaustion seemed to be preventing him from understanding Obi-Wan, and his brow furrowed. Obi-Wan gently explained, "The Council has repealed its earlier order, Anakin; you're to come with me to Utapau."

Anakin's brow remained furrowed as if he still didn't understand, but then his eyes brightened slightly and his brow relaxed as the information processed in his mind. The creases in his forehead smoothed as his lips twitched into a slight smile. "What made them change their minds?"

"A little convincing from me," Obi-Wan answered.

"But you told me you'd be fine without me," Anakin said, sounding slightly annoyed.

"Anakin, this isn't for me," Obi-Wan shook his head. "You're the one who needs to be with someone."

Anakin's expression darkened. "I'm _fine_."

Obi-Wan suddenly looked very tired and very sick. "Anakin, don't start. Just get your things together. We're leaving in three hours. Get some sleep if you can."

Anakin sighed, his mood lightening slightly and he nodded before leaving.

Obi-Wan leaned against a fountain behind him, closing his eyes. He gripped the rim of the fountain wearily before exhaling deeply.

Leia found she couldn't say anything to get his attention. Luke apparently felt the same. The two simply watched as Obi-Wan composed himself once more and stood straight, exiting the garden.

"Did he really listen to your advice?" Luke sounded skeptical.

"Advice or no, nothing changes the effects a war has on a person," Leia shook her head. "You should know that."

"I do," Luke said, his voice suddenly sounding as haunted as Anakin and Obi-Wan's expressions.

As Leia stared at the door where Obi-Wan had left, she couldn't help but forget about her predicament and the situation between Anakin and Obi-Wan for just a moment…

…and worry immensely about Chewbacca and Han.

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**If any of you had the patience to wait this long to still read this story, I commend you!**

**...some feedback would be nice. :) If you haven't all died from old age due to the centuries of waiting for my inept mind to come up with another chapter, that is.  
**


	14. Some Advice Remembered

**Hey, everyone! I'm back! Sorry it took so long; I actually had this chapter ready for a while, but I gave up fanfiction for Lent. *hides from angry mob***

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It was so strange.

Obi-Wan had tried ever since Geonosis to find the Padawans who had told him about the vision. He had even found out who Evan Asani was and asked him for his Padawan.

The Jedi Knight had stared at him blankly and said he never had a Padawan.

It had made Obi-Wan nervous. At first he had thought someone had infiltrated the Temple… but then he'd remembered that he'd seen them not only as teenagers, but as young children as well. They had been part of some clan or another when Anakin had first been brought to the Temple. So what had happened? At one point Obi-Wan had begun to wonder if they'd even been there, but Anakin had confirmed that he'd seen them as well. He had even plotted to blow up an oven with one of them.

Yet now they were nowhere to be found. It was as if they had never existed.

Obi-Wan sighed tiredly as he sat on his cot on the Star Destroyer taking them to Utapau. Leaning against the wall, Obi-Wan turned his head to see Anakin lying on the cot just beside him. Anakin was facing away from Obi-Wan since the two had just argued about Anakin getting some sleep. The boy had been adamantly against the idea, saying that he was fine and didn't need any rest. Obi-Wan had insisted, saying that Anakin looked exhausted and would need all his strength to face Grievous. Anakin had finally, extremely grudgingly, lain down, but he had still refused to close his eyes. Obi-Wan had to threaten him with a sedative before he finally succumbed.

It had been ten minutes since then, and Obi-Wan seriously doubted Anakin was asleep. Nonetheless, when Obi-Wan ever so softly whispered Anakin's name, the boy didn't stir. Anakin was an extremely light sleeper from the war; a battle didn't wait simply because he was asleep, and he had learned quickly to wake up from any noise. If he wasn't reacting to Obi-Wan's whisper, then he was too exhausted to wake up.

A brief flash in the Force caught Obi-Wan's attention and he jumped, his gaze flying to the door where he had sensed it. No one was there, and no one was outside. _Force I must be tired._ Obi-Wan thought before a moan from the other cot made him return his gaze to Anakin once more.

Anakin was shifting, twitching a little and sweating. He muttered incoherently, squeezing his eyes shut and balling his fists around the thin blanket. Obi-Wan stood, slightly concerned at the young man's actions.

The slight movements and soft moans began to grow until Anakin was nearly thrashing in the cot. He yelled out and Obi-Wan quickly grabbed his shoulder and gave it a shake. "Anakin, wake up!"

Anakin jumped, his eyes opening immediately. He still wasn't quite awake, leaving him panting and disoriented, his eyes glistening with unshed tears. He closed them briefly, mumbling and running a hand over his face.

Obi-Wan nudged Anakin's shoulder again. "Anakin,"

Anakin gasped softly, just noticing Obi-Wan, and then he immediately turned away, tightening his muscles and trying to control his reaction to whatever was bothering him.

"Was it a nightmare?" Obi-Wan asked knowingly. Anakin had had plenty throughout the war; it was nearly common practice at this point, and it worried Obi-Wan.

Anakin nodded mutely. He was trembling.

"What was it about?"

Anakin shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut.

Obi-Wan laid a gentle hand on Anakin's arm. "Anakin, tell me."

"It was just a d-dream," Anakin's voice was trembling just as much as his muscles were, leaving Obi-Wan unconvinced.

"Obviously," Obi-Wan's voice was flat with sarcasm. "Anakin, what was it about?"

Anakin's body jolted very slightly under Obi-Wan's hand just as Anakin inhaled sharply. Obi-Wan furrowed his brow in mild alarm. In all the years of the war, Obi-Wan had never once heard or seen Anakin cry. "Anakin, what's wrong?"

"I'm tired," Anakin moaned between quiet sobs. "I'm so tired…"

The rawness of Anakin's voice struck Obi-Wan speechless. He didn't know what to say or do. Anakin hadn't broken down like this since before Geonosis.

Before Obi-Wan could say anything, Anakin croaked, "I have to go back,"

Alarms rang in Obi-Wan's head and he inadvertently tightened his grip on Anakin's arm. "No, Anakin. We're going to Utapau together. We'll be there in five hours."

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no," Anakin shook his head, mumbling into his pillow. "I have to go back, I have to back…"

"Anakin," Obi-Wan gently turned Anakin over to look him in the eye. "We're going to Utapau."

Anakin's eyes were red and glistening, but he hadn't let the tears escape. His face was flushed and he was nearly hyperventilating. "I have to back… Obi-Wan, I have to go back—!"

Obi-Wan shook his head. "No, Anakin. Tell me what's wrong."

"Padmé…" Anakin moaned before realizing what he had said. He quickly wrenched himself out of Obi-Wan's grasp and slung his feet over the side of the cot. As Obi-Wan pondered what he had said, Anakin buried his face into his hands, taking deep breaths.

"What about her?" Obi-Wan asked, not even bothering to correct Anakin's form of address for the senator.

Anakin froze.

"Anakin, what's going on?"

Anakin remained rigid before he slowly began to straighten himself. Obi-Wan stood and walked around the cot to the other side, crouching in front of Anakin. "What about Senator Amidala, Anakin?"

"I…" Anakin stared at Obi-Wan nervously. "Master, she's in trouble. She's in danger."

"What sort of danger?"

Anakin seemed to be looking for the right words. "I… she… the vision…"

"Vision?" Obi-Wan's brow furrowed. "You had a vision?"

Anakin gulped, looking away.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

At Obi-Wan's query, Anakin suddenly stood, his face growing stormy. "Tell you? I've tried to tell you! I tried to tell you back at the Temple but then Palpatine needed to talk to me! I was going to tell you later and then the Council suddenly told me I had to spy on the Chancellor of the Republic! Besides, the last time I told you about a vision, you said it was a nightmare and dreams pass in time!"

Obi-Wan stared at Anakin, hurt and shock emanating through him. Before he could reply, Anakin began trembling again and stumbled around the room uncertainly as if he were suddenly disoriented. "I just… I have to save her…"

"Anakin…" he began, but then his comlink chimed. He was tempted to ignore it, but it was probably important. Activating the device, Obi-Wan discovered it was Cody on the other end saying everyone was ready for the briefing. Obi-Wan said he would be there and then cut the connection. "Come on, Anakin. We need to go to the hangar bay."

…

"He saw us!"

"Are you sure?"

"Leia, he looked right at us," Luke said exasperatedly.

"Yes, and then he looked back at Anakin," Leia argued.

"That's because Father had that nightmare," Luke sighed. "Who's Padmé, anyway?"

"Senator Amidala was the senator for the Chommell Sector," Leia answered. "She was the former queen of Naboo. She died the day the Empire was created. The causes were unknown."

"I guess he didn't save her, then," Luke said sadly.

"I guess not," Leia acknowledged. "Now we need to see if we can find Han, Chewie, and Mon."

"Leia, we've been looking," Luke moaned. "I'm just as concerned as you are, but we haven't had any leads. I can't sense them at all."

Leia looked away, her brow furrowing and her eyes glittering with concern. Luke sighed again and looked at his surroundings.

They had been following Obi-Wan for a while now through the streets of the Utapauan city where Obi-Wan was investigating. He had already discovered a Separatist presence and was awaiting Anakin and the troops.

Watching the two of them interact, Luke could see how they could drift apart; every time one began to open up, they would be interrupted by a situation or circumstance of some sort. Obi-Wan's discussion with Anakin about the nightmare was a perfect example.

Obi-Wan had just obtained a mount named Boga, causing Luke and Leia to exchange worried glances. There was no way they'd be able to keep up with the Jedi Master once he rode that thing.

Sighing once more, this time in resignation, Luke said, "I suppose this would be the opportune time to search for the others some more."

Leia nodded in conviction and walked off, calling for Han. Luke muttered, "Well, at least now I know she gets that stubbornness from our father,"

Luke stood silently as he watched Ben mount Boga. He grabbed the reigns and gave a clicking sound, urging the mount to move. The giant lizard immediately sprang into action, bounding down the platform and climbing a ramp, heading off towards the Separatists. The dignity and calmness that Obi-Wan carried was admirable; Luke truly enjoyed watching the Jedi in action.

After Obi-Wan had left, Luke returned his gaze to where Leia had last been, but she was long gone. Luke didn't know if he should feel worried or not since he didn't even know if they were in existence or not. He supposed if they didn't exist anymore, they wouldn't even be there invisibly. It was all so confusing… and more than a little unnerving.

He just wished he could do something.

Luke called out to the others, remaining in the same spot. He was on a completely different planet from where he had first appeared; for all he knew, Han, Chewbacca, and Mon could be back on Coruscant. The whole ordeal seemed so overbearing and hopeless.

The world around Luke seemed to be muted as he began to wander through the city in search of the others, including Leia. He felt so alone. The nervous chatter of the locals went unnoticed; the hints of Separatist forces were ignored. Luke was slowly slipping into a daze, his mind growing fuzzy, and he wasn't quite sure why. He probably should have been alarmed by what was happening, but it didn't seem to matter anymore.

Luke stepped into a hallway and vanished.

…

Anakin was laughing.

"You _kicked_ him. You kicked Gen. Grievous. In the shin."

"Oh, be quiet," Obi-Wan grumbled.

Anakin laughed even more.

"That must have been a wonderful experience," Anakin snorted in amusement. "I'm sure the words _metallic limbs_ were screaming through your mind in that moment."

Obi-Wan nursed his wounded toes irritably as the clones gathered their injured at the battle's end.

"And then you _lost_ your _lightsaber_… _twice_!" Anakin roared. "Don't you know this weapon is your life?" he added, waving Obi-Wan's lightsaber in his face.

"I'm quite aware of that," Obi-Wan replied. "My toes are reminding me constantly,"

"Yeah, I can hear them," Anakin chuckled. Hushing Obi-Wan's grumbles, Anakin leaned forward, tilting his ear towards Obi-Wan's foot. "Yeah… they're saying _this weapon is your life, Obi-Wan – you must take care of it!_"

Obi-Wan, knowing that phrase all too well from delivering it to Anakin an innumerable amount of times, sighed in defeat. "All right, all right. I lost my lightsaber. Are you happy?"

"Just give me a moment to take this in," Anakin stood straight, looking Obi-Wan over. "I want to remember this so I can rub it in your face for the rest of your life."

"Grudges and gloating are no the Jedi way," Obi-Wan snapped half-heartedly.

"Neither is losing your lightsaber," Anakin shot back with a huge grin.

Luckily, Cody interrupted with a casualty report, sobering the mood and distracting Obi-Wan from his throbbing toes. Nonetheless, Anakin let out a snicker when Obi-Wan had to limp back to the gunships.

The young man definitely seemed to be in a better temperament than he was before Obi-Wan had left. Then again, for all Obi-Wan knew it was a façade. Even if it wasn't, Anakin's dark mood would return once they returned to Coruscant. That planet seemed to dampen Anakin's normally fiery spirit.

…

"How can it be possible that in two days after nearly bringing the war to a close, I've only seen Anakin once?"

Obi-Wan paced in his empty quarters, wondering once more where Anakin was. Anakin was a Jedi Knight, so it really wasn't Obi-Wan's concern where the boy had gotten off to, but with the way Coruscant seemed to darken his mood, Obi-Wan was worried. The last time he saw Anakin, it was to tell him that the Council was reassigning him to spy on Palpatine. Obi-Wan had been against it (again), but the Council had insisted, saying that the campaign on Utapau should have been enough of a vacation for Anakin; Grievous was dead, and so this was a critical time to find the Sith Lord.

Obi-Wan was still worried, though. After all, he had found a shard of glass, and one of his mugs was missing, and some tea had boiled over onto the stove. All these little details painted a picture Obi-Wan didn't like. He especially didn't like it when he found a speck of blood on the kitchen floor.

Pacing some more, Obi-Wan waited impatiently. He had contacted Anakin over his comlink, but Anakin wasn't answering. Anakin had better notice the call and go to their quarters.

To his immense relief, Obi-Wan heard the door open. He rushed over and saw Anakin standing there, looking dazed and tired.

"Anakin, where have you been?" Obi-Wan demanded automatically, but Anakin didn't quite seem to notice him. A second later, Anakin looked at Obi-Wan as if he had just heard him and then answered.

"Sorry, Master; I have no excuse,"

"Where have you been for the past two days?" Obi-Wan clarified his question.

"Spying," Anakin grunted, his eyes dulling and his face clouding.

"It seems to be doing you a great deal of good," Obi-Wan sighed.

Despite Obi-Wan's heavy sarcasm, Anakin seemed to miss the comment entirely. Instead, he just asked, "Can I go now?"

"Let me see your hand,"

Anakin gave Obi-Wan a quizzical look. "What?"

"Show me your hand, Anakin," Obi-Wan held out his own hand in invitation.

"Which one?"

"Your left hand,"

Anakin suddenly seemed noncompliant. "No, thanks. Can I go now?"

"Let me see your hand," Obi-Wan repeated more forcefully.

Reluctantly, Anakin slowly lifted his left hand, palm facing the floor. Obi-Wan turned the boy's palm up and immediately saw a fresh cut with a minute shard of glass sticking in it.

Showing Anakin the wound, Obi-Wan asked, "How did you get this?"

"I broke a mug," Anakin said in a monotone, not really caring. "Sorry,"

"Did you drop it?"

"No, I threw it," Anakin snapped sarcastically. "Of course I dropped it."

"Then why do you have a cut?"

"I was trying to clean it up," Anakin mumbled, his anger suddenly diminishing.

"And you accidentally cut yourself," Obi-Wan surmised. "Anakin, you're more careful than this. You're too tired and too distracted; you can't even clean up a simple mess!"

"Look, I'm sorry about the mess—"

"Merciful heavens, Anakin, that's not my point!" Obi-Wan raised his voice in exasperation. "Sit down. I need to contact Master Yoda."

"What?" Panic crept into Anakin's voice. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

"No, you didn't do anything wrong," Obi-Wan confirmed. "Just sit down and relax."

"Master Yoda is on Kashyyyk," Anakin pointed out as he grudgingly sat.

"Anakin, if you've been paying the slightest bit of attention, Master Yoda arrived home from a successful victory last night," Obi-Wan explained. "This is exactly what I'm talking about."

"Look, I have to go," Anakin stood.

"Where?"

"The chancellor requested me," Anakin answered.

"_It was someone who he considered a friend who took him away from you. Please just be vigilant. It could be anyone."_

"No," Obi-Wan immediately said. "You're not going."

"What?" Anakin stood, getting angry. "I'm not your Padawan anymore!"

"No, but you're still a Jedi Knight and I'm a Master on the Council," Obi-Wan retorted. "Now sit down,"

Anakin clenched his jaw and his fists, but he sat nonetheless.

Satisfied, Obi-Wan reported that Anakin was very sick and wouldn't be able to keep an eye on the chancellor. He then reported to the chancellor's secretary the same message… sans the spying part.

"I'm sick now?" Anakin crossed his arms, eyeing Obi-Wan aggressively.

"As far as I'm concerned, you are," Obi-Wan snapped. "You haven't been yourself since the attack on Coruscant. Now what's wrong?"

"A lot of things!"

"Then tell me all of them," Obi-Wan spread his hands open. "I'm here to listen and to help you, Anakin, and now you have no other obligations."

"Why are you doing this?" Anakin nearly moaned, his anger diminishing. He suddenly looked as sick as Obi-Wan made him out to be over the comlink.

Obi-Wan sat beside Anakin. "Because I want to help you, Anakin, and I can't do that unless you let me."

Anakin looked at Obi-Wan long and hard. He seemed to be debating something. It seemed as if an eternity had passed before he finally sighed and broke eye contact. "Master…"

"Yes?"

Just as he seemed like he was about to open up, Anakin shook his head vigorously. "No, I—I need to go to the chancellor. It's my duty."

Obi-Wan put a hand on Anakin's arm to prevent him from standing. "You're not going to be helping anyone until you handle whatever's bothering you, Anakin. You're too distracted. You're too tired."

When Anakin still didn't say anything, Obi-Wan prompted, "Is it about Senator Amidala?"

Anakin froze, telling Obi-Wan he was on the right track.

"You said she was in danger," Obi-Wan reminded Anakin. "What did you see in your vision?"

"I… I saw…" Anakin stuttered, wringing his hands feverishly.

"Anakin," Obi-Wan gently placed his hand on top of Anakin's hands to calm the young man. "What did you see?"

Anakin stayed still, not saying a word. His eyes stared at Obi-Wan's hand atop his own. Then:

"I saw her die in childbirth."


	15. White Wedding

_He had been shocked. Oh, yes, he had most definitely been shocked. Yet he wasn't surprised. He didn't even know if there was a difference between shocked and surprised, but he had somehow managed to find it. Their relationship was not surprising, but a marriage and a baby was shocking._

_He had been told everything. He had listened, nodded, and not said a word. After all, how could he? He was stunned speechless._

"Anakin, you're going to catch a cold,"

"I can't go in, Master. I love the rain."

_He had then listened to the vision. It was vague, as most visions were. It was frightening, as his visions always were._

"Do remember that we have an early start to the morning tomorrow. You can't be getting sick now of all times."

"I'll be fine for tomorrow. You should be the one worrying."

"I _am_ worrying."

_He had consoled him. He had told him everything would be fine. He had told him they would figure it out. But he had also told him that they needed to tell the Council as soon as the immediate issue was taken care of._

_He had said he would be there for him._

"Does this look good?"

"Oh, Master, you look great. Stop freaking out."

"Didn't you freak out?"

"A little, I guess. But I didn't care."

"That's not surprising."

_The Sith Lord had been found. He had made himself known. And the boy had remembered his words of comfort._

_He had come to him._

"You don't have to spend the night here, you know. Go be with Padmé."

"Nah, I know you need me right now. Besides, I don't want to be over there tomorrow morning. It'll be insane."

_They had told the Council, together. His seat on the Council had been taken away, but that was more of a relief to him than anything else._

_But he had also defeated the Sith Lord behind it all. They couldn't throw him out._

"I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow."

"Relax, Master. Even if it is raining, remember what happens when white clothes get wet."

"Anakin!"

_He had been so proud of him._

The next day was sunny, much to Obi-Wan's relief. He straightened his dress robes, leaving Anakin smirking. "Oh, be quiet,"

"You look fine," Anakin said. "Stop fussing. By the way, she looks beautiful, too."

Obi-Wan smiled and looked at his left hand. Anakin looked at it too.

The moment was interrupted when Padmé walked over. "Anakin, where are they? They're hiding somewhere with you."

Anakin put on an innocent face. "How would I know? You've been with them all night, not me."

Padmé narrowed her eyes warningly.

Anakin yielded. "Okay, okay. Luke, Leia, come out."

Two pairs of eyes, one chocolate brown and one ocean blue, appeared from underneath one of the tables set up in the garden inside the Jedi Temple. "Daddy!"

"Hey, when your mother gives me that look, you know I can't defend you," Anakin shrugged as the five-year-old twins crawled out.

"You're going to get grass stains on your clothes," Padmé sighed.

"Like we did on Naboo?" Anakin smirked.

"That was for a different reason, Anakin,"

"I think I'll be going now," Obi-Wan quickly said.

"Oh, no you don't," Anakin grabbed Obi-Wan's arm. "You have a wife to greet."

"She's just over there, Anakin,"

"Obi-Wan," Anakin said reproachfully. "She's been your wife less than an hour and you're already abandoning her to the guests?"

"I am _not_ abandoning her!"

"Then go over there," Anakin nudged Obi-Wan lightly, laughing as the Jedi stumbled to the center of the garden.

Padmé wrapped an arm around Anakin as the two watched Obi-Wan greet his wife, Siri Kenobi, and then talk with the other Council members.

"I thought you were talking to Senator Mothma," Anakin noted.

"Oh, I was, but then she was preoccupied with Chancellor Organa," Padmé shrugged. "Besides, I wanted to make sure Luke and Leia weren't getting into trouble."

"What are you talking about?" Anakin looked at the twins, who had both perfected Anakin's innocent-as-an-angel expression. "They haven't done anything."

As the couple stood there and began to start a conversation, Luke and Leia noticed two familiar figures and took off. Luke ran to an enormous Wookiee who was a friend of Master Yoda's. The Wookiee noticed Luke and immediately picked him up, twirling him around to his delight.

"Hi Chewie!" Luke shouted happily. Chewbacca greeted him warmly in Shyriiwook.

Meanwhile, Leia was more preoccupied with a family that was standing by the waterfall. The teenage son seemed unusually entranced by the garden before noticing Leia watching him.

"Hey Leia," Han shouted with a wave. "Where's your mom? My folks want to thank her for inviting us."

Leia stomped her foot and crossed her arms. "You didn't bow."

"What?" Han gave a funny look.

"You were supposed to bow during the wedding when the bride and groom bow!" Leia explained. "You didn't bow!"

"Wha—oh, come on, you little princess," Han rolled his eyes in exasperation. "I didn't know; I'm not used to this whole Force Jedi hokey thing."

"It's not hokey!" Overhearing Han's statement, Luke ran over in his sister's defense.

"Sure thing," Han shrugged. "Just go find your parents!"

"No need, Solo," Anakin said as he and Padmé approached. "We're right here."

Han jumped and then ran back to his parents, making Luke and Leia laugh before running off to play with the other younglings. Anakin and Padmé then resumed their conversation as Han continually poked his parents to let them know the Skywalkers were there.

"So how did you manage to convince Obi-Wan to finally go through with it, Anakin?" Padmé shook her head. "I still haven't gotten it out of you."

"The same way I convinced the Council that maybe allowing some attachment isn't such a bad thing?" Anakin smirked. "I can be very persuasive."

Padmé quirked an eyebrow. "I'm still skeptical. Are you sure it wasn't Obi-Wan who prevented the Council from grilling your hide?"

Anakin gave a hurt expression. "You're a cruel woman, you know that?"

Padmé laughed and the two shared a tender kiss.

Off in the corner of the happy scene, two figures stood in the shadows.

"Is this what you were expecting when you started this whole mess?" the older voice asked, a touch of exasperation in it.

The younger voice barked out a laugh. "Uh, no. Hey, it wasn't my fault they did this!"

"But you were hoping for it."

"I think the bride and groom look good together."

"You would,"

The younger voice laughed and then sighed. "So… what does this mean for us?"

The older figure faced the younger one. "It means we don't exist anymore."

The younger one sounded startled. "What?"

"Time has changed, Anakin,"

"But Master—"

"Don't even try to argue, Anakin. This whole mess was _your_ doing."

"I just wanted them to see it." Anakin pouted. "We're… we're going to…?"

"Disappear?" Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. "Well, yes and no. We're technically going to turn into _them_."

Anakin looked back at the other Obi-Wan and laughed again. "I can't wait for that; I'll get to make fun of you actually getting married! But… oh… I suppose we won't remember any of this, will we?"

At that, Obi-Wan looked uncertain. "I really don't know, Anakin."

Anakin stared at Obi-Wan for a moment and then threw his arms around the man. "I'm sorry, Obi-Wan, I'm so sorry—"

"Anakin," Obi-Wan cut into the younger man's frantic apologies. "I already know you're sorry; you were sorry before you even died. You don't have to try to give me an eternity's worth of apologies just because things are about to change."

"But I won't remember being Darth Vader," Anakin said.

"You'll have never been Darth Vader," Obi-Wan smiled, brushing a stray hair out of Anakin's face. "Now let's go enjoy the wedding."

The two Jedi faced the scene once more. Padmé and Siri were talking while their husbands chatted happily. The two ghosts began to fade.

"Are you scared?" Anakin asked, his voice revealing that he himself was.

"Not really," Obi-Wan smirked. "After all, it's just another adventure."

The two ghosts faded.

_Fin_

* * *

**Well, that's all folks! :) Okay, okay, yes, it seems... well, maybe a bit sudden, but maybe a bit disappointing that you didn't get to see a big epic battle against Palpatine? There are plenty of stories that show one million different ways of killing Palpatine, so I just decided to skip that entirely (besides, I'm planning a sequel and it will have the details in there). Not to mention the story was intended to follow Luke and the others, and since they technically 'vanished' from all existence, it was quickly turning into my other Anakin-and-Obi-kick-some-butt stories. XD If the italicized words were a little too vague, be assured, Palpatine is quite dead. :)**

**Okay, I'd like to thank my lovely readers! Special thanks to:**

**Jedi Master Misty Sman-Esay**

**ILDV**

**general-joseph-dickson**

**Pearl Maiden**

**Thank you all so much! And thank you to all my amazing reviewers; reviews always keep me excited and ready to write more for my stories. Know that your comments are not falling on deaf ears!**

**And I'd also like to thank those who had reviewed the story before the chapters were organized more properly, preventing them from reviewing further. If any of you original readers are still reading this, know that I'm grateful for the input you provided! :)  
**

**See you all in my other stories. :)**

**-Girlbender875  
**


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